Prostate Cancer

Prostate Cancer is the second most common form of cancer in men (after skin cancer) and Prostate cancer is the second most common cause of cancer death (after lung cancer). While Prostate cancer may progress so slowly that some patients live with it for years and end up dying of something else, once Prostate cancer spreads to the bones it is incurable and—like many cancers—can be excruciatingly painful. “Everybody talks about the painful last year of life for prostate cancer,” says Peter Albertsen, a urologist at the University of Connecticut. “It is a horrendous death.”

But it Prostate cancer is a death that’s on a steady decline. Deaths from prostate cancer are expected to fall below 29,000 this year, according to the American Cancer Society—down from 31,500 in 2001 and about 35,000 as recently as 1993. The Prostate cancer decrease is a tribute to better diagnosis and treatment; in comparison to lung cancer, for example, the risk factors for prostate cancer are mostly either unknown or unavoidable. Age is a main factor in Prostate cancer; the incidence is one in 53 for men in their 40s and 50s, but one in seven for men 60 to 79. People with a family history of Prostate cancer are at higher risk, as are African-Americans (Prostate cancer higher risk because darker skin produces less protective vitamin D in response to sunlight) and farmers (Prostate cancer possibly the result of occupational exposure to herbicides). Some evidence suggests that obesity and a diet rich in animal fats may contribute to the Prostate cancer, and lycopene, a substance found in tomatoes, may be protective but it strikes plenty of lean, fit, health-conscious men as well. Vasectomies, bicycling and sex (or abstinence) don’t seem to make much of a difference in Prostate cancer, one way or the other.

In Prostate cancer diagnosis, the big breakthrough of the last 20 years was the development of a simple test for prostate specific antigen (PSA) in Prostate cancer, a protein whose blood level reflects changes in the prostate. A Prostate cancer rule of thumb, PSA readings above 4 are cause for concern in regard to Prostate cancer, although the cutoff varies by age. If a high reading is confirmed on a second test, doctors typically order a biopsy to check for Prostate cancer.Prostate cancer cells, if present, are rated on the Gleason scale from 1 to 10, with the higher numbers indicating a more aggressive and dangerous tumor (Prostate cancer).

It’s then up to the man, and his doctor, to decide on a course of Prostate cancer treatment. The range of Prostate cancer treatments is wide, the side effects of these Prostate cancer treatments unpredictable and often unpleasant—and the stakes are, literally, life or death. In older men whose Prostate cancer is progressing slowly doing nothing may be the best solution. Matters of Size will keep you educated on Prostate cancer and any new developments in Prostate cancer will be updated on the linking pages. The best deterrent for Prostate cancer may be early detection and education. Matters of Size will help its members be at the forefront in Prostate cancer information.