Early Signs Of Prostate Problems – Many People Have It All Wrong

The really awful thing about prostate cancer is the absence of any symptoms in the early stages of the disease. Most men may even be aware of the fact that they are at increased risk of developing the mutation and uncontrollable multiplication of the cells of their prostate gland, but while they were waiting for the symptoms to show, the disease could have sneaked up on them and gotten quite advanced in the process.

Prostate cancer is however not the only disorder that may develop in the prostate. More common in fact is the disease called benign prostate hyperplasia, also known simply as prostate enlargement (or an enlarged prostate). This one occurs in up to 80 percent of men that make it to over 70 years old, and generally causes their prostate glands to grow up to seven or eight times their normal size.

The early signs of prostate problems are therefore the same symptoms that a man should look out for. For instance, he should be conscious of the fact that he is urinating more as he grows older. Although this is common enough in all aging men, when it is accompanied by pain in urination, there is likely a problem.

BPH can cause nighttime urination and a feeling or urgency to urinate, while also causing difficulty emptying the bladder and a weak urinary stream. These symptoms are warning signs that one will come across when dealing with advancing prostate cancer.

Other early signs that may indicate the coming of a prostate problem are pelvic pain, problems with urination, discomfort after ejaculation, and lower back pain. They may also include infection, swelling, pain, and difficulty in urinating; the penis may release bacterial fluid, and blood may appear in the urine. These are generally symptoms of prostatitis, which may be bacterial in nature, or nonbacterial. In some cases bacterial prostatitis may even cause severe infections throughout the body, producing a dangerously high fever.

It pays to pay attention to these warning signs because that may be what saves one’s life. An early diagnosis of the disease, whatever it is, is critical to treating it. It may not be prostate cancer, but one such infection is sufficient to increase the risk of prostate cancer several fold. And should the symptoms be those of prostate cancer, well, the sooner the treatment starts, the better.

But concerning prostate cancer, a man should get examined at least once a year in order to catch the disease before it spreads, instead of waiting for the Early Signs Of Prostate Problems.

Prostate Cancer Exam – Screening And Tests

Ninth most common form of cancer in the world; second most common non skin cancer in men in America; second greatest cause of cancer deaths amongst men in the United States; over 200,000 new diagnoses per year; and close to 20,000 deaths every year as well.

The statistics in the above paragraph all pertain to prostate cancer, one of the most feared and well known diseases in the United States. These facts are made worse by the fact that the disease is not too easily detectable. There are no early symptoms, so that the condition could very well have gotten to advanced stages before it is diagnosed, at which time treating with the intent to cure could very well be a futile effort. Thankfully it is known that the disease is rare amongst men younger than 45 years of age and grows more common in the 60s.

As a result of the above, the American Cancer Society ACS recommends that men aged 50 years and older should seriously consider having annual screening tests to determine if they have the disease… in order to be able to catch it and get the best treatments. There is particular urgency for men who have a high risk for the disease – African American men and those who have a family history of prostate cancer. They are urged to talk to their doctors about starting annual screening tests at younger ages too.

These examinations and screening tests for prostate cancer are basically two in number:

1. The annual Digital Rectal Exam

and

2. The PSA test.

The digital rectal examination (DRE) requires that the doctor inserts a gloved finger into the rectum of the patient to feel the prostate gland. If the prostate has grown in size or changed in any way, the doctor will be able to tell this way. If there is nothing at all, the patient walks; but if the doctor suspects that they may be something, he advocates for a PSA test.

The male body produces an enzyme called the prostate specific antigen (PSA). There are constantly levels of this protein in the blood, but unless there is something wrong with the prostate, like an infection or disease. In such an instance, the blood level of the PSA markers rise above the 4.0ng/ml mark. During the PSA test, blood is drawn from the patient to be tested the laboratory. If the PSA level is above 4.0, there is cause for concern… except that it might not be prostate cancer at all. Other disorders can cause the PSA spike, so a biopsy may have to be conducted in order to confirm the diagnosis.

Understandably the annual screening with a PSA test is controversial because there are many false positives.  Sometimes an elevated PSA level occurs in men who do not have prostate cancer, leading to unnecessary additional procedures; but if it saves his life, the prostate cancer exams are totally worth it.

Blood In Urine – Prostate Cancer Symptoms and Signs or Myth

Blood in the urine occurs as one of the relatively few symptoms of prostate cancer that are known. Early stage disease lacks any known warning signs, by the way; and it is only at this point that they start to appear. It doesn’t come first either – it is often precursored by increased urination at night, difficulty starting and sustaining a steady stream of urine, and painful urination. The actual occurrence of the bloody urine is an indication of disease progression, not occurrence.

In prostate cancer, blood in urine may signify that the cancerous cells in the infected organ are starting to migrate into the bloodstream and migrate through it to other regions of the body. This is a stage of the disease that is difficult to treat but in which hope may not be entirely lost. Hormonal therapy can still slow the progression of the disease down sufficiently for it to be treated with a combination brachytherapy and external beam radiation treatment.

However blood in the urine is a common problem referred to generally in the medical community as hematuria, sometimes the sign of a serious problem in the urinary tract, and at other times not really a serious problem and requires no treatment. This is why one needs to blow an alarm upon observing the blood, but instead he should proves to a medical expert for a thorough evaluation. Once this has been carried out a qualified healthcare provider then the way forward would be clear enough.

A trace amount of blood in urine is actually normal because average men typically excrete close to a million red blood cells in a single the urine each day if he has a healthy urinary tract. This amount of urine cannot be seen physically, so really it is no cause for alarm. An abnormal amount of blood in the urine can be acute or chronic, which may occur just once or several times. If a man has prostate cancer, the pain that accompanies it should be substantial. In addition, the patient is likely to see blood in his semen as well, which is a serious enough situation to cause the man to worry.

Certain treatments are meant to palliate advanced stage prostate cancer, which is generally what the blood in semen signifies. A man at a high risk of the disease should know well enough to get that medical test in a hurry. Although there are several screening tests that usually are done to determine if the man has prostate cancer, he may skip them all and head straight for the prostate biopsy. With an examination of the cells of his prostate gland under the miscroscope, they can know precisely how much to worry… and start to decide on treatments.

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