Prostate cancer signs

Watching for prostate cancer

The bad news for men is that about one in six of them will be diagnosed with prostate cancer during their lifetime, according to American Cancer Society estimates. Other than skin cancer, prostate cancer is the most commonly diagnosed cancer in American men. In addition, prostate cancer is behind only lung cancer in causing cancer death in American men.

The good news is that most men diagnosed with prostate cancer do not die from it. In fact, more than 2.5 million men in the United States who have been diagnosed with prostate cancer at some point are still alive. On top of that, one of the most common conditions with the prostate, benign prostatic hypertrophy (BPH), is not cancerous and can be treated with medicine and/or surgery.

Risk factors for prostate cancer

Many people with one or more risk factors never get cancer, while others who get cancer may have had few or no known risk factors. Researchers don’t completely understand the causes of prostate cancer, but these are some of the risk factors involved.

Age — Rarely occurs before 40 with nearly two thirds of the cases diagnosed in men age 65 or older

Race/ethnicity — Occurs more commonly in African-American men who are more than twice as likely to die as Caucasian men; less common in Asian-American and Hispanic/Latino men than in non-Hispanic whites.

Family history — Having a father or brother with prostate cancer more than doubles a man’s risk

Genes — Several inherited gene changes seem to raise the risk, but probably account for only a small number of cases; genetic testing for most of these gene changes is not available

Diet — The role of diet is not clear, but eating more red meat or high-fat dairy products appears to slightly increase risk; however, these men also tend to eat fewer fruits and vegetables, so doctors aren’t sure which factor is more significant

Weight — Some studies have found that obese men are at a lower risk of getting a less-dangerous form of the disease, but at a higher risk of more aggressive form

Smoking — Most studies have not found a link with smoking, although some recent research indicates a possible connection to a small increase in the risk of death

Can prostate cancer be prevented?

These are some of the possible factors related to prostate cancer, and many risk factors such as age, race, and family history cannot be controlled. The exact cause is not yet known, so at this time it’s not possible to prevent most cases of the disease.

For further information on prostate cancer, start with your family physician. If you need one, visit VistaHealth.com to find one of our many board-certified physicians in family medicine or in any other medical specialty.

Source of information: the American Cancer Society