The Facts of Life: Examining Reproductive Health

Cancers

Prostate Cancer

Prostate cancer is the most common non-skin cancer in men and is the second leading cause of male cancer death. Each year, more than 200,000 men are diagnosed with this disease. Prostate cancer may develop with or without symptoms and they may include any of the following:

• A need to urinate frequently, especially at night
• Difficulty starting urination or holding back urine
• Inability to urinate
• Weak or interrupted flow of urine
• Painful or burning urination
• Painful ejaculation
• Blood in urine or semen
• Frequent pain or stiffness in the lower back, hips, or upper thighs

The medical specialists who treat genitourinary diseases are called urologists. To conduct an exam for prostate cancer, a physician will insert a gloved, lubricated finger into the rectum to check for any abnormal growths.

A blood test, called prostate specific antigen (PSA), is also a commonly used method for prostate cancer detection. While these tests alone are insufficient in the diagnosis of prostate cancer, they are valuable indicators. The American Cancer Society and The American Urological Association recommend a yearly rectal exam and PSA for men between the ages of 50 and 70.

Other methods of detection such as transrectal ultrasonography, intravenous pyelography, and cystoscopy may also be employed. Transrectal ultrasonography sends sound waves through a probe into the rectum. The waves bounce off the prostate to create a picture called a sonogram. Intravenous pyelogram is a series of x-rays of the organs of the urinary tract. A cystoscope is a thin, lighted tube that allows a physician to look directly into the bladder and urethra.

Treatments For Prostate Cancer
Surgery

Radical prostatectomy - surgery to remove the prostate - may be performed in one of two ways. In retropubic prostatectomy, the prostate is removed through an incision in the abdomen. Perineal prostatectomy involves the removal of the prostate through an incision made between the anus and scrotum.

Hormone therapy

Hormone therapy is generally employed to combat advanced prostate cancers. Since cancer cells thrive on hormones, therapy must involve cutting back or eliminating the hormone supply. One form of hormone therapy is surgery to remove the testicles (orchiectomy). Sometimes estrogen, a female hormone, is prescribed to stop the testicles from producing testosterone.

Radiation therapy

Like surgery, radiation therapy is local therapy; it affects only the cells in the treated area. Most often, the radiation comes from an x-ray machine. This treatment is called external radiation therapy. The rays are aimed at the tumor and the area around it and stop the cancer cells from growing.