Prostate Cancer  

The prostate is a  male reproductive system gland located below the bladder and in front of the rectum.  Prostate cancer forms in the tissues of the prostate and often occurs in older men.  The urethra is the tube through which urine flows and is surrounded by the prostate gland.   

Cancer begins in the cells of the body, which are the building blocks of tissue.  Tissue makes up the organs of the body.  The cells of the body divide to make new cells.  When new cells are formed, old cells die, and new cells take their places.  If the old cells are not removed from the body as these new cells grow, a mass of cells is formed which is called a tumor.  A tumor can be benign, meaning rarely harmful, or malignant, meaning cancerous.  Cancer can be, in many cases, removed from the body, but there is always the possibility that it  will grow back.  It can move from the organ where it originated to other organs of the body, through blood vessels or lymph vessels.   

The exact cause of prostate cancer is not known, but the medical arena has discovered that there are certain risk factors associated with the development of prostate cancer. 

Your family history can foretell the development of prostate cancer, as can chromosomal abnormalities . If your brother, father, or uncle had this form of cancer, the chances that you will acquire it are increased.   Black men have a more increased probability to develop prostate cancer than do white men, or Hispanic men.  Races that have less of a chance of developing prostate cancer are Asians, Pacific Islanders, Native Americans, and Alaskan Native men.   

The most common symptom of prostate irregularities is urinary tract abnormalities, such as: difficulties with urination, burning associated with urinating, frequent urination, irregular flow of urine.  Other symptoms include: erectile dysfunction, pain in the lower back or thighs, and blood in the urine.  Although these symptoms are not always precursors of the presence of cancer, doctors will need to be notified if any of these changes occur.  The doctor will administer a digital rectal exam, or will test blood for a PSA, prostate-specific antigen, which can identify the levels of PSA in the prostate.  If these test indicate that further testing is required, the doctor will follow with a trans-rectal ultrasound, and/or a trans-rectal biopsy. 

The treatment for prostate cancer must be customized to the patient’s needs and to the characteristics of the patient’s cancer.  The choices for treatment may include surgery, radiation treatments, and/or chemotherapy.  Depending on the age of the patient, monitoring the growth of the tumor through  PSA measurements and biopsies may be enough.  Hormonal therapy, a treatment that lessens the amount of testosterone in the prostate (since decreased testosterone can prohibit growth of the tumor), can be required.   

If the cancer has not spread outside the prostate, and if the cancer cells are not extremely abnormal, the prognosis can be good for the prostate cancer patient.  Of course, expectations can vary greatly.  Two actions that can help prevent prostate cancer are,  adhering to a low fat diet, or Japanese-like diet, one that is high in omega-3 fatty acids, and annual screenings.