What is prostate cancer?
Prostate cancer is the uncontrolled growth of cells in the prostate gland. It is the second most common cancer in males in the United States (the first being skin cancer). Around 13 out of 100 men get prostate cancer during their lifetime in America.
The prostate gland is a part of the male reproductive system. It is a small (almost walnut-sized) gland located just below the bladder and in front of the rectum (the last part of the large bowel), surrounding the urethra (the tube carrying urine out of the bladder). The prostate has two main functions:
- producing and storing fluid that helps make semen and
- nourishing the semen.
What are the main causes of prostate cancer?
The exact cause of prostate cancer is not known. Studies have revealed that prostate cancer occurs when the deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) or genetic material of a normal prostate cell undergoes a sudden and abnormal change called a mutation.
The DNA stores all the information required for the normal functioning of cells. It constitutes the oncogenes (which instruct cells to grow, divide, and live) and tumor suppressor genes (which regulate cell growth and division, as well as repair any damage or abnormality in the DNA). Prostate cancer may result when the oncogenes become overactive or the tumor suppressor genes get turned off in the prostate cells. The abnormality may begin with a single prostate cell that multiplies rapidly to produce many more such cells resulting in uncontrolled growth of prostate cells (prostate cancer).
According to researchers, certain conditions can increase the risk for prostate cancer. These include:
- Age: The chances of getting prostate cancer increase with age. Most experts recommend considering screening when a man is aged 50 years.
- Race: African-American men are at a greater risk of developing prostate cancer.
- Family history: There is a higher risk of prostate cancer in men who have a close family member (father, uncle, or brother) diagnosed with prostate cancer at an early age (younger than age 65).
- Heredity: Certain genetic conditions may increase the risk of prostate cancer.
- Diet and lifestyle: Men who have a diet rich in animal fats and low in fruits and vegetables may have greater chances of getting prostate cancer. Being obese or having a sedentary lifestyle also raises prostate cancer risk.
- Smoking: It increases oxidative stress in the body causing an increased risk of several cancers, including prostate cancer.
SLIDESHOW
Screening Tests Every Man Should Have See SlideshowCan prostate cancer affect your sexual life?
Prostate cancer may result in an enlarged prostate that can cause sexual problems in men, such as:
- Erectile dysfunction (the inability to attain and maintain an erection sufficient for sexual intercourse at least 25% of the time)
- Reduced sex drive
- Decreased sexual satisfaction
Prostate cancer may cause a sudden onset of erectile dysfunction (ED). Erectile dysfunctions may also occur after the completion of therapy for prostate cancer, including
- surgery,
- radiotherapy, and
- hormonal therapy.
Erectile dysfunction may also result due to noncancerous enlargement of the prostate (called benign prostatic hyperplasia or BPH).
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Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Basic Information About Prostate Cancer. https://www.cdc.gov/cancer/prostate/basic_info/
Top What are the main causes of prostate cancer? Related Articles
BPH Slideshow
Benign Prostatic Hyperplasia (BPH) is a condition cause by an enlarged prostate. Get more information on how an enlarged prostate is diagnosed and available treatment for enlarged prostate glands.
How Do You Check for Prostate Cancer at Home?
Prostate cancer is highly treatable in its early stages. Thanks to the increase in cancer screening, cancer is also being diagnosed early.
How Does Prostate Cancer Kill You in the End?
Prostate cancer is cancer of the prostate gland in men. Death from prostate cancer most often happens when cancer has spread (metastasized) to other organs in the body.
How Quickly Does Prostate Cancer Spread?
Prostate cancer is a cancer that develops in the prostate gland in men and it is one of the most common types of cancer. In some cases, it can take up to eight years to spread from the prostate to other parts of the body (metastasis), typically the bones. In other cases, it may be more aggressive.
Prostate Cancer
Prostate cancer is the most common cancer in men after skin cancer.
- Risk factors include age, family history, ethnicity, and diet.
- Prostate cancer is diagnosed by a digital rectal exam, prostate-specific antigen (PSA) test, and prostate biopsy.
- Symptoms may include
- frequent need to urinate,
- incontinence, pain,
- blood in the urine,
- fatigue, and more.
- Prognosis and treatment depend on cancer staging.
- Watchful waiting,
- surgery,
- radiation,
- cryotherapy, and
- other management strategies are available.
- Research and clinical trials strive to find new and better treatments for prostate cancer.
Signs of Prostate Cancer: Symptoms, PSA Test, Treatments
What is prostate cancer? Prostate cancer is the most common cancer in men. Learn the signs and symptoms of prostate cancer, along with causes and treatments. Know the stages, survival rates and how to lower your risk of prostate cancer.
Prostate Cancer Staging and Survival Rates
The prognosis for prostate cancer, as with any cancer, depends on how advanced the cancer has become, according to established stage designations. The patient's PSA score at diagnosis, as well as their Gleason score (the grading system used to determine the aggressiveness of prostate cancer) determines the prognosis and final stage designation. Prostate cancer has a high survival rate in general, but your chances depend on the stage of the cancer.
What Are the 5 Warning Signs of Prostate Cancer?
Prostate cancer rarely produces symptoms in the early stage; however, few signs can help in detecting prostate cancer.
What Are the Five Stages of Prostate Cancer?
The Gleason grading system grades prostate cancer from 1 to 5. According to cells’ appearances under a microscope, this system grades the most common (primary) and second most common (secondary) patterns of cells in a tissue sample collected via biopsy.
What Foods Kill Prostate Cancer?
Prostate cancer refers to the uncontrolled growth of cells in the prostate gland. There is no particular food or recipe that can directly kill prostate cancer cells. Some foods that may be helpful in prostate cancer recovery and relapse prevention include foods containing lycopene, beans, green tea, cruciferous vegetables and fruit like cranberries, strawberries, blueberries and pomegranates.
What Happens If You Don't Treat Prostate Cancer?
If prostate cancer is left untreated, it may grow and possibly spread out of the prostate gland to the local tissues or distant sites such as liver and lungs.What Is Stage IV Prostate Cancer Life Expectancy?
The survival rate in most people with advanced prostate cancer is 30 percent at the fifth year of diagnosis. This means around 70 percent of the diagnosed men are not alive in the fifth year after diagnosis.