Prostate Cancer

General Information

The prostate gland surrounds the urethra, the passageway for urine that leads from the bladder to the outside of the body. Cancer may develop in this gland. Prostatic cancer is a disease of older men. The tumor is often silent and without symptoms until cancer has spread.

Early symptoms of prostatic cancer are not separable from those of benign prostatic hypertrophy. These symptoms may include:

• Hesitancy (difficulty starting the urinary stream)
• Frequency (frequent passage of urine)
• Urgency (passage of small amounts of urine). Frequently there is dribbling and a decrease in the force of the urinary stream as well.

As the tumor progresses, it may produce blood in the urine (hematuria) or sudden obstruction with urinary retention. Most often the first signs and symptoms may be related to the distant spread of the cancer rather than to problems with the urinary tract itself.

Important Points in Treatment
Prostatic cancer is a slowly progressive tumor. If the physician finds a tumor before it spreads, the treatment is often surgical. Even after spread has occurred, prostatic cancer is only slowly progressive. With radiation and chemotherapy, it is possible to arrest or slow the development of the tumor.

Notify Our Office If ...

• You note a change in your ability to urinate.
• You see blood in your urine.