Related topics: men
Prostate cancer
hideProstate cancer is a form of cancer that develops in the prostate, a gland in the male reproductive system. The cancer cells may metastasize (spread) from the prostate to other parts of the body, particularly the bones and lymph nodes. Prostate cancer may cause pain, difficulty in urinating, problems during sexual intercourse, or erectile dysfunction. Other symptoms can potentially develop during later stages of the disease.
Rates of detection of prostate cancers vary widely across the world, with South and East Asia detecting less frequently than in Europe, and especially the United States. Prostate cancer tends to develop in men over the age of fifty and although it is one of the most prevalent types of cancer in men, many never have symptoms, undergo no therapy, and eventually die of other causes. This is because cancer of the prostate is, in most cases, slow-growing, symptom free and men with the condition often die of causes unrelated to the prostate cancer, such as heart/circulatory disease, pneumonia, other unconnected cancers, or old age. Many factors, including genetics and diet, have been implicated in the development of prostate cancer. The presence of prostate cancer may be indicated by symptoms, physical examination, prostate specific antigen (PSA), or biopsy. There is controversy about the accuracy of the PSA test and the value of screening. Suspected prostate cancer is typically confirmed by taking a biopsy of the prostate and examining it under a microscope. Further tests, such as CT scans and bone scans, may be performed to determine whether prostate cancer has spread.
Treatment options for prostate cancer with intent to cure are primarily surgery and radiation therapy. Other treatments such as hormonal therapy, chemotherapy, proton therapy, cryosurgery, high intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU) also exist depending on the clinical scenario and desired outcome.
The age and underlying health of the man, the extent of metastasis, appearance under the microscope, and response of the cancer to initial treatment are important in determining the outcome of the disease. The decision whether or not to treat localized prostate cancer (a tumor that is contained within the prostate) with curative intent is a patient trade-off between the expected beneficial and harmful effects in terms of patient survival and quality of life.
For more information about Prostate cancer, read the full article at
Wikipedia.
This text uses material from Wikipedia and is available under the GNU Free Documentation License.
News tagged with prostate cancer
The tall and short of diseases
Nov 25, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- Research shows that being taller means a fatter pay check and an increased risk of some cancers.
Prostate Cancer Surgery Performed by Many Surgeons with Little Experience
Nov 19, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- A new study from researchers at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center has found that the majority of surgeons treating prostate cancer in the United States have extremely low annual caseloads, potentially ...
Detecting the Undetectable in Prostate Cancer Testing
Nanotechnology / Bio & Medicine
Nov 18, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- A team of Northwestern University researchers, using an extremely sensitive nanotechnology-based tool known as the biobarcode system, has detected previously undetectable levels of prostate-specific antigen ...
Common pain relief medication may encourage cancer growth
Nov 18, 2009 |
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Although morphine has been the gold-standard treatment for postoperative and chronic cancer pain for two centuries, a growing body of evidence is showing that opiate-based painkillers can stimulate the growth and spread of ...
African-American men at higher risk of false positives in prostate testing
Nov 17, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- While an elevated prostate-specific antigen (PSA) test can be frightening news for men, new research shows that sometimes the levels are caused by a naturally occurring hormone, and may not indicate a need ...
Tumor-initiating Cells Detected in Pten Null Prostate Cancer Model
Nov 12, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- New findings published in Cancer Research, a journal of the American Association for Cancer Research, advance the current understanding of the role of stem/progenitor cells on the initiation and progression of pro ...
Routine evaluation of prostate size not as effective in cancer screening (w/ Video)
Nov 10, 2009 |
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New Mayo Clinic research studied the association between prostate-specific antigen (PSA) levels and prostate size and found that routine annual evaluation of prostate growth is not necessarily a predictor for the development ...
New finding suggests prostate biopsy is not always necessary
Nov 06, 2009 |
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Researchers at Wake Forest University School of Medicine and the University of Wisconsin-Madison have discovered that some elevated prostate-specific antigen (PSA) levels in men may be caused by a hormone normally occurring ...
New Synthetic Molecules Trigger Immune Response to HIV and Prostate Cancer
Nov 05, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- Researchers at Yale University have developed synthetic molecules capable of enhancing the body’s immune response to HIV and HIV-infected cells, as well as to prostate cancer cells. Their ...
Does prostate-specific antigen velocity help in early detection prostate cancer?
Nov 05, 2009 |
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The November issue of European Urology, the official journal of the European Association of Urology, features an article focussing on prostate specific antigen (PSA) velocity and early cancer detection. It has been sugges ...
Chemo-radiation before prostate removal may prevent cancer recurrence
Nov 04, 2009 |
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Researchers in the Oregon Health & Science University Knight Cancer Institute and the Portland Veterans Affairs Medical Center have found a combination of radiation therapy and chemotherapy given before prostate removal is ...
Does race, income predict prostate cancer outcome?
Nov 04, 2009 |
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A patient's socioeconomic status (income, martial status and race) has absolutely no impact on his outcome following curative radiation therapy for the treatment of prostate cancer, according to a new study from Henry Ford ...
Cancer patients want honesty, compassion from their oncologist
Nov 04, 2009 |
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What do patients want from their radiation oncologists? The most significant preference is that more than one-third of female cancer patients (37 percent) prefer to have their hands held by their radiation oncologists during ...
Blood vessels might predict prostate cancer behavior
Nov 03, 2009 |
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A diagnosis of prostate cancer raises the question for patients and their physicians as to how the tumor will behave. Will it grow quickly and aggressively and require continuous treatment, or slowly, allowing therapy and ...
Low cholesterol may shrink risk for high-grade prostate cancer
Nov 03, 2009 |
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Men with lower cholesterol are less likely than those with higher levels to develop high-grade prostate cancer - an aggressive form of the disease with a poorer prognosis, according to results of a Johns Hopkins collaborative ...
