Do you have difficulty urinating? Does blood appear in your urine or sperm? To rule out prostate cancer, please consult Dr. Neeta Verma, a recognised urologist in Bhubaneswar.
Prostate cancer is one of the most common tumors that men develop. The prostate is a small gland in the shape of a walnut that produces seminal fluid, which nourishes and transports sperm. It is located just beneath the bladder and surrounds the upper portion of the tube that empties urine from the urethra in men.
According to Dr. Neeta Verma, often termed to be the best urologist in Bhubaneswar, prostate cancer occurs when there is a change in the DNA of the prostate gland’s cells. These mutations wreak havoc on the instructions the DNA sends to the cells, instructing them to grow at an accelerated rate. These undesirable and harmful cells amass, resulting in a tumor that can progress to cancer.
Numerous prostate cancers develop over time, remain confined to the prostate gland, and may not be harmful. Nevertheless, while some prostate tumors are slow-spreading and may not require treatment, others are highly malignant and can rapidly spread.
What are the signs and symptoms of prostate cancer?
Among the most prevalent indications and symptoms are:
- frequent urination, typically during the night
- having difficulty initiating urination
- needing to use much effort to urinate
- Urine has a poor flow, causing longer bathroom breaks
- having a sensation that your bladder is only partially empty
- blood in semen or urine
- irrational loss of weight
- erectile dysfunction – trouble achieving and maintaining an erection
- backache
- sense of burning when ejaculating or urinating
Please do not hesitate to consult Dr. Neeta Verma, a highly qualified urologist in Bhubaneswar, if you have any of these symptoms or to ask a question on clinicpots.com click here, and the most reputed urologists and oncologists will answer your query.
What factors lead to prostate cancer?
Doctors cannot determine the specific etiology of prostate cancer unless they examine each case individually. However, the following are some of the risk factors:
- Age – As you age, your risk of prostate cancer increases. Statistics indicate that its prevalence increases after age 50.
- Ethnicity – Men of certain ethnicities are more prone to get prostate cancer for unknown causes and probably the aggressive kind.
- Genes – If a sibling, parent, or kid of yours has been diagnosed with prostate cancer, your likelihood of developing the disease increases.
- Additionally, if you carry the BRCA1 or BRCA2 gene (a gene that raises the likelihood of having breast cancer) or have a significant family history of breast cancer, your risk of acquiring prostate cancer may increase.
- Obesity: Although studies have yielded contradictory results, obese people may have a higher chance of acquiring prostate cancer than those who have a healthy weight. Individuals who are obese are more prone to have aggressive malignancies that are more likely to recur following initial treatment.
- Diet: Men who consume a lot of fat, particularly red meat and other forms of animal fat cooked at a high temperature, are more likely to acquire advanced prostate cancer.
- Specific occupational exposures: Workers habitually exposed to cadmium (a silver-white metal), Rubber workers, battery producers, and welders appear to be unusually prone to prostate cancer.
Routine checkups are always recommended.
The best prognosis for recovery, according to Dr. Neeta Verma, is for prostate cancer in its early stages that is still contained within the prostate gland.
Can cancer of the prostate be prevented?
Although prostate cancer cannot be prevented, there are measures to minimize your risk.
Choose healthful foods, keep a healthy weight, and exercise regularly to minimize your chance of prostate cancer. Turmeric, red grapes, apple peel, and green tea, among other foods, contain chemicals that inhibit prostate cancer growth.
Tobacco use raises the risk of developing prostate cancer. Quitting smoking is the best approach for smokers to lower their risk.
Limit your exposure to dangerous chemicals: According to certain research, males exposed to cadmium and pesticides have an increased chance of developing prostate cancer.
The FDA has approved one vaccination (Provenge) for the treatment of prostate cancer at this time. The vaccination is intended to boost the immune system to fight prostate cancer cells.
Conditions such as obesity, diabetes, and metabolic syndrome have been associated with an increased risk of prostate cancer and should be treated. If you have any of these illnesses, it may be possible to minimize your risk by working with your doctor to manage them.
Certain drugs, including finasteride (Proscar) and dutasteride (Avodart), can aid in lowering the risk of prostate cancer. Typically, these medications are used to treat an enlarged prostate (benign prostatic hyperplasia).
The American Cancer Society advises men over 50 to discuss prostate cancer screening with their physician.
How is prostate cancer treated?
According to Dr. Neeta Verma, a qualified and known to be the best urologist in Bhubaneswar, the treatment options for prostate cancer depend on many factors. They include the rate at which the disease progresses, if it has spread, your overall health, and the potential benefits and drawbacks of the recommended course of treatment.
If the prostate cancer is of a low degree, physicians may occasionally recommend active surveillance. Regular blood tests, prostate biopsies, and rectal examinations may be performed to monitor cancer progression. If diagnostic testing reveals that your disease is spreading, you may elect to undergo radiation therapy or surgery.
- Surgery
- Prostatectomy: Surgical removal of the prostate.
- Radical prostatectomy: the removal of the prostate and its surrounding tissue.
- Radiation treatment: This therapy eradicates cancer using X-ray-like high-energy radiation.
- External radiation therapy: A device outside the body directs radiation at malignant cells.
- Internal radiation therapy (brachytherapy): To eradicate the cancer cells, radioactive pellets or seeds are surgically injected into or positioned close to the tumor.
The following are additional prostate cancer treatments for which research is ongoing:
- Cryotherapy: Freezing and destroying cancer cells by placing a specific probe into or near the prostate cancer.
- Chemotherapy: The use of certain drugs to treat or eliminate cancer. The medications may be administered orally, intravenously, or occasionally both.
- Biological therapy: This therapy utilizes the body’s immune system to fight cancer or manage the negative effects of other cancer treatments.
- Targeted high-intensity ultrasound: In this treatment, ultrasound waves (high-energy sound waves) are focused on cancer cells to eradicate them.
- Hormone treatment prevents growth-promoting hormones from reaching cancer cells.
Conclusion
After learning that you have prostate cancer, you may experience disbelief, worry, anger, anxiety, and depression. Every individual eventually develops a distinct coping mechanism.
Although there is no cure for prostate cancer, there are therapies that can extend life expectancy. Men with prostate cancer must communicate with their physicians and make treatment decisions that are best for them.
Remember that early detection is crucial for effective therapy.
If you or a loved one have experienced any of the symptoms or risk factors described in this blog, please do not prolong your suffering. You may schedule a consultation with Dr. Neeta Verma.
