Prostate Cancer Screening – The PSA Test and DRE Screening

The symptoms of prostate cancer usually involve difficulties associated with passing out urine and having ejaculations. Pains, blood, fatigue, etc are also some of the signs associated with or that can affect individuals who are experiencing the growth of cancer from their prostate glands.

Some of these symptoms are also associated with some other conditions that can affect the prostate. For instance, when the prostate gets enlarged, gets infected, or experience what is referred to as Benign Prostatic Hyperplasia (BPH), these symptoms can still appear.

The question now is this, what test or screening is to be done to really diagnose cancer of the prostate cancer separately from other similar conditions? This article is going to throw some light on two popular screening procedures usually prescribed for men that are to be diagnosed of cancer of the prostate.  These are the PSA test and DRE screening.

• PSA Screening – this is a kind of blood test that tends to examine the amount to PSA in the blood. PSA stands for prostate Specific Antigen. It is an enzyme or protein substance usually secreted by the prostate gland. An elevated amount of PSA is usually found in the blood of men with prostate cancer.

The PSA test has not really been accepted as a standard screening procedure for cancer of the prostate. This is because of a lot of faulty positive results that may often occur. However, it can help to doctors to determine if the patient has elevated amount PSA in the blood.

• DRE Screening – DRE refers to Digital Rectal Exam. It is a screening procedure in which the doctor inserts a gloved and lubricated finger into the rectum to feel any lump of enlarged prostate. The need for this exam is based on the fact that prostate cancer can result in the enlargement of the prostate gland.

DRE still has some issues as it may ignore other symptoms and misdiagnose other conditions. However, it is still a good screening option applied to test for prostate cancer in men.

The combination of PSA and DRE can yield better result as screening procedures to detect early cancer of the prostate. However, others screening procedures like the carrying out of tissues biopsies can be used to provide a more authentic diagnosis.

Finally, PSA and DRE, despite not yielding the best of results as prostate cancer screening, are still very important aspect of prostate cancer diagnosis today.  Talk to your doctor about the screening tests for prostate cancer today.

Symptoms of Early and Advanced Prostate Cancer

It is often said that the symptoms of prostate cancer are similar to those of other conditions that affects the prostate gland. For this reason, it then becomes necessary to identify the peculiar symptoms of cancer as it affects the prostate. Distinguishing these symptoms is important so that the proper treatment and management would be provided in due course.

 That being said, we are going to look at the early symptoms and advanced symptoms of prostate cancer.

For a start, cancer of the prostate is the second highest killer of cancer diseases for men. It ranks only second to cancer of the lungs. The cancer originates from the prostate gland, a walnut size tissue near the rectum and below the bladder or men. It forms part of the reproductive system in men.

This cancer grows slowly and the early symptoms may not really have any significant effect on the person until when it gets to the advanced stage. With this alarming fact it becomes necessary to get all symptoms facts there are about this condition that is affecting millions of men globally.

 Early symptoms of prostate cancer

Tentatively speaking, the very early symptoms of prostate cancer do not show any warning signs, however the following symptoms can still be said to be early warning signs if the cancer is still localized within the prostate tissues:

• Inability to initiate urine
• A frequent need for the man to stand up to  urinate at night
• A painful sensation in the course of urination
• A weak urinary  stream
• A burning sensations during ejaculation
• Blood in the semen during ejaculation
• Blood in urine

 Advanced symptoms of prostate cancer

When the cancer cells have extended to other parts of the body beyond the prostate, then they are said to be advanced. The symptoms in this case, are more dangerous and could be life threatening. These include:

• Extreme Fatigue, vomiting, loss of weight, loss of appetite, and  nausea
• Pain in the bones, ribs, upper thighs, lower back, and pelvis.
• Paralysis  in  the legs
• Constipation in the bowels and swelling of the lower extremities.

Conclusively, these are highlights of the early and advanced symptoms of prostate cancer. You should call your doctor to check properly if you experience one or more of the symptoms above. It is important that early detection of prostate cancer is made so as to achieve early and effective treatment.

Prostate Cancer Screening – Other Causes of Elevated PSA Levels

PSA means prostate Specific antigen. It is an enzyme or protein-like substance produced by the prostate gland and can be traced inside the blood stream. The presence of this enzyme in the blood stream is an indication that the person has cancer of the prostate. In other words, PSA test is applied to screen men for prostate cancer. In most cases, an elevated level of more than 10ng/ml is considered a red flag for prostate cancer.

However, it should be noted that elevated levels of PSA is not only an indication that the person could be suffering from prostate cancer but there are yet other causes of elevated PSA levels. These other causes are discussed below.

• Prostatitis – This is a condition that causes inflammation on the prostate gland. Usually, infections and other unclear factors can cause this inflammation. A person suffering from Prostatitis can be diagnosed with high levels of PSA. This is more especially if the person has chronic Prostatitis.
• Benign Prostatic Hyperplasia (BPH) – This condition is often described as enlarged prostate. Most men who are more than 50years of age are diagnosed with this condition.BPH is a non-cancerous growth of the prostate gland, hence the prostate can swell but does not spread like prostate cancer. The PSA levels of those with BPH can rise just as for people diagnosed with cancer in the prostate.
• Recent Ejaculation – The passing out of semen from the penis during sexual intercourse or otherwise is referred to as ejaculation. However, this habit can spike the level of prostate Specific Antigen or PSA. When going for a prostate cancer test, the man could be advised by the doctor to avoid sexual activity of any act that may lead to ejaculation a few days before his blood sample is taken for PSA test.
• Biopsy and Digital Rectal Exam (DRE) – These are other types of tests that can spike the level of prostate Specific Antigen in the blood. Biopsy involves the taking of tissue samples of the prostate to be examined under the microscope. In most cases, this procedure artificially elevates the PSA level. This is more likely to occur if biopsy is conducted a few days before PSA test. Also, Digital Rectal Exam (DRE) conducted before PSA test can spike the level of PSA in the blood. Thus, to avoid false positives in prostate cancer screening, the PSA test is better conducted several days before biopsy or DRE.
• Finally, another factor that can cause elevated PSA in the blood is the bicycle riding. A study published in the Journal of Urology linked bicycle riding with PSA test. It was reported that strenuous bicycle riding can spike up the PSA level on a short term.

So, these are some of the other factors that can elevate the level of the Prostate Specific Antigen (PSA) in the body. With this understanding, it is important to note that increase in your PSA level may not necessarily mean you would be diagnosed with prostate cancer. Your doctor can carry out other diagnostic methods to complement PSA blood levels to truly diagnose or screen cancer in your prostate.

 

 

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