Prostate Cancer Symptoms

The most common prostate cancer symptoms include frequent nighttime visits to the bathroom to urinate, difficulty emptying the bladder, pain upon urination, pain during ejaculation, and blood in the urine or semen. You may also feel pain in the lower back, thigh, or hip areas. As scary as these symptoms may be, it is important that you get to the doctor immediately for testing. In some cases, the problem is simply an enlarged prostate that is completely benign and does not require treatment except for watching and waiting.

Prostate cancer is beatable if caught early. In fact, many doctors recommend that their male patients get tested for prostate cancer annually starting at age 35-40. A man's prostate normally grows in size after age 25; however, an accelerated rate of growth could point to prostate cancer. Allowing your doctor to examine you annually and check your prostate is the only way to determine if all things are as they should be.

The two tests used to diagnose prostate cancer are the prostate-specific antigen (PSA) test and the digital rectal exam. With the PSA test, the doctor measures the PSA enzyme in your blood for irregularities. When this test is performed in conjunction with the digital rectal test, the doctor is able to determine if cancer is present or if a benign condition is the cause of the symptoms.

Recognizing Prostate Cancer Symptoms

No one wants to even imagine hearing a diagnosis of prostate cancer. However, it is important to keep in mind that many benign conditions exhibit the same symptoms as prostate cancer, so it is best to find out the source of the problem. In many cases, it is nothing to worry about, and in the other cases, early detection can mean the difference between life and death. It's far better to know the facts so that you can move forward with a plan that can help you live a long and healthy life.