Visions of Life: A Journey Towards Health and Wealth

Part 2 in learning more about this disease that is attacking my Uncle Paul. Please, send him your prayers as he takes on this challenge.

Understanding Prostate Cancer - Symptoms

What Are the Symptoms?

There are no warning signs or symptoms of early prostate cancer. Once a malignant tumor causes the prostate gland to swell significantly, or once cancer spreads beyond the prostate, the following symptoms may be present:

* A frequent need to urinate, especially at night.
* Difficulty starting or stopping the urinary stream.
* A weak or interrupted urinary stream.
* A painful or burning sensation during urination or ejaculation.
* Blood in urine or semen.

These are not symptoms of the cancer itself. Instead, they are the symptoms of the blockage from the cancer growth within the prostate and surrounding tissues.

Symptoms of advanced prostate cancer include:

* Dull, incessant deep pain or stiffness in the pelvis, lower back, ribs or upper thighs; arthritic pain in the bones of those areas.
* Loss of weight and appetite, fatigue, nausea, or vomiting.


Call Your Doctor If:

* You have difficulty urinating or find that urination is painful or otherwise abnormal. Your doctor will examine your prostate gland to determine whether it is enlarged, inflamed with an infection, or may have cancer.
* You have chronic pain in your lower back, pelvis, upper thighbones, or other bones. Ongoing pain without explanation always merits medical attention. Pain in these areas can have various causes but may be from the spread of advanced prostate cancer.
* You experience unexplained weight loss

When to Seek Medical Care

See your health care provider if you have any of the following symptoms:

* Difficulty initiating and/or stopping a urine stream

* Frequent urination

* Pain on urination

* Pain on ejaculation

You should undergo regular screening for prostate cancer.

* Men aged 50 years and older should undergo a yearly digital rectal examination and blood testing for prostatic specific antigen (PSA).

* Men in the high-risk group, such as those with a family history of prostate cancer or of African American ethnicity, should begin screening as early as age 40 years.

Go to the nearest hospital emergency department right away if you have any of the following symptoms:

* Urinary tract infection - Burning pain on urination, urgency, frequent urination, especially with fever

* Bladder obstruction - Not urinating or urinating very little despite drinking enough fluid; producing little urine despite straining; pain due to a full bladder

* Acute kidney failure - Not urinating or urinating little, with little discomfort, despite drinking enough fluid

* Deep bone pain, especially in the back, hips, or thighs, or bone fracture - Possible sign of advanced prostate cancer that has spread to the bones

Spinal cord compression is a true emergency and may be the first sign of cancer. It occurs when the cancer has spread to vertebrae of the spine and tailbone region. The weakened vertebrae can collapse on the spinal cord, causing symptoms and problems with function.

* Symptoms depend on the level at which the spine is compressed.

* Typical symptoms that might signal acute spinal cord compression include weakness in the legs and difficulty walking, increased difficulty urinating or moving your bowels, difficulty controlling your bladder or bowels, and decreased sensation, numbness, or tingling in the groin or legs.

* These are often preceded by pain in the hip (usually one sided) or back lasting a few days or weeks.

* Such symptoms require immediate evaluation in the nearest hospital emergency department. Failure to be treated immediately can result in permanent spinal cord damage.