10 Things Every Man Should Know About Prostate Cancer

1. One out of every six men will get prostate cancer sometime in their life. Over 192,000 cases are expected in 2010 – more than breast cancer.
2. The chances of getting prostate cancer are 1 in 3 if you have just one close blood relative (father, brother) with the disease. The risk if 83% with two blood relatives. With three, it’s almost a certainty (97%).
3. African- American men are at special risk for the disease, with the highest rate of prostate cancer in the world.
4. Prostate cancer is the second-leading cause of male cancer-related death in the United States. About 27,000 men in the U.S. died of prostate cancer in 2009, and approximately 254,000 worldwide in 2007.
5. There are no noticeable symptoms of prostate cancer while it is in the early stages. That is why screening is so critical.
6. Every man age 50 or over should resolve to be screened annually. African- American men or those with a family history of the disease should start annual screening at age 40. Some primary doctors are screening men as young as 30. Talk to your doctor about when you should get checked.
7. Before early detection through PSA blood screening, only 1 in 4 prostate cancer cases were found while still in the early treatable stages. With the widespread use of screening, about 9 out of 10 cases are now found early- giving men a fighting chance of beating the disease.
8. Nearly 100% of men diagnosed with prostate cancer while it is still in the early stages are still alive five years from the diagnosis. When diagnosed in the late stages of the disease, that number drops drastically. Of men diagnosed in the late stages of the disease, only 33.4% survive 5 years after their diagnosis.
9. Screening for prostate cancer involves a simple blood test and a physical exam. It takes about 10 minutes and is covered by health insurance in many states.
10. Obesity is a significant predictor of prostate cancer severity. Men with a body mass index of 32.5 have about 1/3 greater risk of dying from prostate cancer. Research shows high cholesterol levels are strongly associated with advanced prostate

All prostate cancer statistics noted above are 2010 estimates reported by the American Cancer Society. Visit www.CuringProstateCancer.com for more info.

Anecdotes

My 32 year old friend’s father was diagnosed with prostate cancer when he was 71 years old. When my friend started having some problems with urination, he went to a doctor who specializes in the genito-urinary system ( urologist). The doctor performed a prostate cancer screening blood test called a PSA and a physical exam because of the symptoms and the father’s history of prostate cancer. The tests came back positive for cancer! A prostate biopsy confirmed the diagnosis. Because of the increased risk for prostate cancer when two blood relatives have the disease, my friend’s 34 year old brother was also tested. It was confirmed that he, too, had early stage prostate cancer! Because of their physician’s prudent decision not to allow their youth to influence his decision to test them both for this dread disease, both men are alive today, more than 8 years after their original diagnosis.