Benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) is a condition that occurs in men usually over 50 years old and is characterized by an enlarged prostate. As men age, it is natural for the prostate to become enlarge. BPH is a noncancerous growth of the cells within the prostate gland. By age 60, more than half of men have BPH. By age 85, about 90 percent of men have BPH, but only about 30 percent will have symptoms.
Read MoreA PSA test is a blood test used to measure the level of PSA in the blood. Many have heard the 3 letter abbreviation, especially if you are a man over 50, but what exactly is a PSA? PSA is the abbreviation for Prostate-Specific Antigen, which is a protein produced by the cells of the prostate gland. The PSA is often called a biological or tumor marker because it can be used to detect disease. The disease in this case is prostate cancer. Therefore the PSA test measures the level of PSA in the blood, like we mentioned above, in order to screen for prostate cancer.
Read MoreThe grading system for prostate cancer is used to help assess the prognosis of prostate cancer. It also provides the doctor with the necessary information needed to select the most optimal treatment plan for the patient. Similar to staging prostate cancer, grade are given to each prostate cancer case to determine the severity of the disease. A urologist will assign a grade to the prostate cancer after the patient has undergone a prostate biopsy. The tissue samples are sent to a laboratory to be analyzed by a pathologist.
Read MoreThe PSA blood test is often the first step in screening for prostate cancer. It is included in a two-part screening process that also includes the digital rectal exam (DRE). Since the PSA is not prostate-cancer specific, abnormal results are further, or an elevated PSA is not a diagnosis for cancer. Things like evaluating a patient, knowing their medical and family history, following a PSA trend, as well as the velocity at which PSA changes can help a physician make an informed decision about what an elevated PSA might mean. Because PSA tests are not necessarily straightforward, simple or easy diagnostic tools, knowing the risk factors and tracking the changes in PSA can help you and your physician interpret a PSA properly.
Read MoreA new study from Australia suggests that robotic-assisted laparoscopic radical prostatectomy is more effective at preserving erectile function and urinary continence than a laparoscopic radical prostatectomy for treating localized prostate cancer. The study was recently published as a meta-analysis in Urologia Internationalis. The study was conducted by researchers at Monash University in Melbourne, Australia. It involved two randomized controlled trials and included a total of 232 patients in which each of their surgical approaches were compared.
Read MorePSA (prostate-specific antigen) blood test. A normal PSA is less than 4.0 ng/mL. If the PSA level is greater, it is more likely that prostate cancer is present. However, there are other conditions that can raise the PSA. Men with a PSA level between 4.0 and 10.0 ng/mL have about a 25 percent chance of having prostate cancer. If the PSA level is greater than 10.0ng/mL, the chance of having prostate cancer is over 50 percent. If you have a high PSA, a doctor will look at other factors such as age, race, and family history, and also rule out any other possible conditions causing the elevated PSA. If other conditions have been ruled out, the doctor will recommend a prostate biopsy.
Read MoreResearchers at Cancer Research UK have discovered that there are actually five different types of prostate cancer. The researchers say that these five different types of prostate cancer can be distinguished from one another and may even mean different treatments for each type that could be targeted to patients. The study was published in the journal EBioMedicine.
Read MoreRace/ethnicity: African-American men and Caribbean men are more likely to develop prostate cancer compared to men of other races. African-American men are more than twice as likely to die of prostate cancer compared to Caucasian men. Prostate cancer occurs less often in Asian-American and Hispanic/Latino men than in non-Hispanic whites.
Read MoreMen with early-stage prostate cancer are increasingly opting for regular monitoring and holding off on treatment unless the disease progresses. New study shows the use of so-called active surveillance or watchful waiting among men with localized PC was low from 1990-2009. But treatment option increased between 2010-2013.
Read MoreThe 4Kscore test is a simple blood test that detects high risk, aggressive prostate cancer. It measures four prostate protein (prostate-specific kallikreins) levels in your blood including total PSA, free PSA, intact PSA, and human kallikrein 2 (hK2). The results are combined in an algorithm with patient age, digital rectal exam and prior negative biopsy to give physicians a personal score for each patient.
Read MoreThe PHI test is a new blood test that may eventually replace the PSA test when testing for prostate cancer. It is a simple, noninvasive blood test that is three times more specific than PSA in detecting prostate cancer. Controversy remains surrounding the use of the PSA test to screen for prostate cancer. This is due to the belief that the PSA test may lead to over-diagnosis and over-treatment in men with low-grade, less aggressive forms of the disease.
Read MoreConsider these facts on prostate cancer. More than 200,000 men will develop prostate cancer this year, making it the #1 cancer in men after skin cancer. Almost 30,000 men will die of prostate cancer, second only to lung cancer. Detecting and treating prostate cancer early is the key to cure. Unfortunately prostate cancer screening guidelines vary among organizations with no universally accepted standard. As a consequence this has created confusion among patients and caregivers alike. The importance of being an educated patient has never been greater.
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