Prostate Diagnosis
One of the leading cancers in men, prostate cancer is a silent killer that will often surprise you with an attack. You see, symptoms of this disease is hard to detect for the simple fact that they are often little things, the usual pains and problems that you have that seem ordinary.
It is only when the cancer spreads to the organ that symptoms like pain, erectile dysfunction, difficulty in urinating and defecation, will manifest. No major symptoms will be felt at the onset of the cancer. In fact, many men die of other problems before doctors even learn that they have prostate cancer.
If there are no symptoms, how else can doctors diagnose the presence of prostate cancer? Prostate cancer is often diagnosed through a general physical examination and the use of blood tests like the PSA Test. PSA test or the prostate specific antigen test, which manages to isolate a protein in the sample to detect the presence of cancer.
Another test that is used to detect prostate cancer is the digital rectal examination or DRE for short. This time, it is the doctor who will palpates the prostate with an index finger inserted inside the rectum. The doctor will be looking for an odd lump or a hardness that should not be there on the surrounding prostate gland. This examination is recommended for men who are already in their 40s or older.
Still there are doctors who do not believe in the accuracy of these tests. That is why, they use another test to ensure the presence of cancer in the organ. They do this through the biopsy. During a biopsy, suspected cancer patients will have to give a sample tissue from their prostate organ to be used under the microscope. This will be taken through a needle inserted into their prostate under ultrasound imaging. This can be really uncomfortable and sometimes even painful but this will often reveal cancerous cells.
Prostate diagnosis of grades of the cancer will depend upon the look and the shape of the cells in the tissue sample. Normal prostate cells have distinctive shapes and appearances. The degree to which the samples are different from what the normal prostate cell looks like will determine the grade of the cancer. If it barely resembles the normal cells, the cancer may already be "high-grade". This grading system is often called the Gleason Grading System, which uses five distinct patterns for prostate tumor cells.
Staging of the disease
Assigning the stage where the cancer is already at depends on the spread of the disease in the organ and in the body. When the cancer is only confined in the prostate organ, this is called localized. When it is locally advanced, this means that although most of the cancerous cells are within the organ, they are beginning to spread to nearby cells and tissues. In metastatic cases, the cancer cells have already spread outside the prostate and have already affected some of the other organs and tissues in the body.
To determine this, there are a host of tests that can be done or used. There are CT scans, MRIs and X-rays. Doctors may also ask you to undergo other imaging tests to determine the extent and spread of the cancer. This is often done with patients who are already in their metastatic stage through the lymph nodes.
A prostate diagnosis that will determine the grade and stage of the cancer is very important as this will determine your survival rate as well as the treatments that will be available for you.
Prostate Tip #1
As men age, they should think about prostate problem prevention since men in their fifties have a higher risk of developing an enlarged prostate or even cancer. It takes less money to prevent a disease from happening rather than treating it.
Prostate Tip #2
It will be in your best interests to get a prostate screening annually from your physician once you reach age 45 to determine if you have any problems with your prostate. This will also help your physician detect any cancer while it is still in its early stages.