Know About the Prostate and The Problems Associated with It

 

The prostate is the most critical male reproductive organ which helps produce semen and is situated below the bladder. The only way for a doctor to feel the prostate during diagnosis is to perform a rectal examination. As men age, the size of their prostate considerably increases as part of a condition known as Benign Prostatic Hyperplasia (or BHP) which leads to complications later in life. Prostate enlargement can also cause urinary problems, sometimes even leading to chances of contracting prostate cancer. However, those suffering from BPH may not require urgent treatment as only those exhibiting crucial symptoms may have to visit a doctor. Mild cases may be treated with medication, however, surgery might be required if the patient is suffering from an extreme condition/case.

Alongside BPH, there are other conditions as well related to cancer, which may affect men (both in their middle and later ages) significantly, sometimes even requiring them to undergo proper treatment for prostate cancer. Other conditions related to the prostate include Prostatitis: this is caused by prostate inflammation and would need a professional Urology Consultant in Bangalore. This condition can lead to formation of pus in the prostate. In this case, a doctor would be looking at draining the pus out of the prostate. However, in case of chronic prostatitis, the disease may linger for a considerable amount of time and can only be managed with prolonged medication.

Prostate Cancer

Although it may sound and appear to be concerning, prostate cancer varies in intensity, and hence, follows a very slow-paced growth. A doctor would usually first conduct a rectal examination to detect the cancer and its stage along with PSA, also known as Prostate Specific Antigen. PSA is almost like a blood test that measures the chemical released from the prostate. Although an increased PSA result doesn’t guarantee cancer, it is advisable to discuss the report with an experienced urologist or Urology Consultant in Bangalore.

Treatment for Prostate Cancer

If the cancer is still in its early stages, the doctor would choose to do nothing immediately and just continuously monitor the growth. Being a slow-spreading disease, this cancer takes years before its impact becomes more noticeable or permeable. However, if the cancer has spread considerably, and is in the final stages, there are a range of treatment options to choose from such as surgery, radiation therapy, chemotherapy, hormone therapy, immunotherapy, and using novel hormones that can effectively contain the spread.

Prostate Cancer Symptoms, Treatment, Causes & Stages

The prostate is a gland of the male reproductive system. It is located in front of the rectum and just below the bladder. Its main function is to produce fluid for semen, which transports sperm.

Prostate cancer is a malignant tumor that begins most often in the outer part of the prostate. It may spread to the inner part of the prostate and beyond the prostate to other parts of the body.

Who gets prostate cancer?

Most men who get prostate cancer are above the age of 50 years and the risk increases with age. Other risk factors are family history and smoking

What are the stages of prostate cancer?

Stage 1

The doctor is unable to feel the tumor, but has been found during TUR-P or was found by needle biopsy that was done for elevated PSA

Stage 2

The doctor can feel the tumor by rectal examination and it appears confined to the prostate gland.

Stage 3

Cancer has spread beyond the prostate to nearby tissues like seminal vesicles

Stage 4

Cancer has spread to other organs like bladder, rectum, the pelvic lymph nodes or to distant parts of the body, most commonly to the bones.

How is prostate cancer treated?

Your doctor may use one or more of the following methods – surgery, hormone treatment, radiation and anti-cancer drugs. The choice depends on the stage of the cancer, your age and other medical co-morbidities.

Radical prostatectomy is used to treat cancer localized in the prostate and involves complete removal of the prostate. Often the pelvic lymph nodes are removed as well.

Radiation therapy uses high energy x-ray beam to kill cancer cells. Radiation may be given from a machine located outside the body (external radiation therapy), or from a radioactive substance introduced directly into the tumor. Sometimes a combination of these methods is used.

Both surgery and radiation provide excellent 10-year survival rates. Your doctor can help advise you about the best treatment for your kidney cancer.

Hormonal therapy is used to treat prostate cancer which has spread beyond the prostate. The 2 basic techniques involve:

• drugs that prevent the release or counter the action of male hormones
• surgical removal of the testicles, which make the male hormones. Because male hormones stimulate the growth of prostate cancer, treatments that interfere with the effect of these hormones can slow the cancer’s growth, sometimes dramatically. Occasionally, chemotherapy is used.

NU Hospitals provide the cutting-edge prostate cancer surgery and treatment in Bangalore, India. We also provide Kidney transplant surgery.

Myths about Prostate Cancer all Men should know

Myth: Only older men get prostate cancer:

It’s true that your risk of prostate cancer increases as you get older, it’s also true most men are diagnosed after 65 years old.

Some of the symptoms of prostate cancer are:

• You’ve difficulty urinating
• Blood drops in your urine
• Impotency
• Body aches
• Loss of appetite

Myth: No prostate cancer symptoms means no cancer:

Not necessarily when it comes to your prostate, a small, walnut-shaped gland whose job is to produce fluid that nourishes sperms. No symptoms may just mean the cancer is in its early stages. Signs of prostate cancer usually arise after it progresses, including problems in urinating, such as slow and weak flow, blood drops in the urine, pain in the pelvic area. Of course, these symptoms may also be caused by a list of other things that don’t include cancer.

Myth: No one in my family has prostate cancer, so I’m safe:

It’s likely that your genes will play a role. If your father has prostate cancer, you’re twice as likely to develop it, your brother, three times as likely. In that case, discuss possible screening tests with the urologist.

Myth: A high PSA score means prostate cancer:

Some prostate-specific antigen (PSA) in your blood is normal. High levels, however, or inflammation in your prostate, the gland may get enlarged, or it may (possibly) indicate cancer.

Myth: Prostate cancer isn’t that serious:

Prostate cancer is the second leading cause of cancer death in men, after lung cancer. It’s usually slow-growing cancer that at least at first, stays confined to the gland. For men diagnosed with very early-stage prostate cancer, treatment may not be necessary right away, or at all, depending on the type of cancer. Instead, you may be asked to be under supervision for several years.

At NU Hospitals, you’ll be treated by some of the best urologist specialists in Bangalore.