If prostate cancer is a man’s disease, why a Woman’s Guide? Well, it’s because generally women take better care of their men than men take care of themselves. So this, ladies, is what you should know in order to take care of your man.
Prostate cancer is exceedingly common in men, though most men won’t know they have it. It is a very slow-growing cancer. It was once reported that although they pass away from other causes, 50% of men will have prostate cancer when they die.
The prostate is a walnut-sized gland that sits below the bladder and adjacent to the rectum. That’s why the doctor checks the prostate by putting his finger into a man’s rectum. By pressing against the wall of the rectum, the doctor can actually feel the prostate to check its size and rigidity. Needless to say, it is not a very comfortable procedure.
The main purpose of the prostate is to manufacture the fluid (semen) that carries sperm out of the body. The most common prostate problem is an enlarged prostate, also called Benign Prostatic Hyperplasia (BPH). It is considered a benign condition because it does not cause health problems—merely some incredibly annoying symptoms.
Since the urethra passes from the bladder and through the prostate, an enlarged prostate squeezes the urethra, often causing a variety of urination problems (difficulty starting urination, weak flow, inability to empty the bladder completely, frequent urination at night, sudden urges to urinate, etc.) You’ve probably seen the commercials on TV for one or another medication for these symptoms.
Recognizing these symptoms is important because prostate cancer can also cause the prostate to become enlarged and lead to the same symptoms.
Prostate cancer is easily detectable by a simple blood test called a PSA test. PSA stands for Prostate Specific Antigen, a blood chemical that increases in the presence of a variety of prostate abnormalities, including cancer. A low PSA reading is normal. Elevated PSA readings indicate something going on with the prostate that needs to be looked into further.
Since prostate problems usually arise for men when they hit their fifties or later, the PSA test is usually a standard part of a complete physical exam for men 50 and older.
The majority of men will discover they have prostate cancer in their 60’s or 70’s, when they seek treatment for urinary symptoms. On the other hand, men in their 40's or 50's have also been diagnosed with the disease.
Because the cancer is slow growing, it is not uncommon for there to be no treatment, especially if the man is in poor health, because of the possibility that he will die of other causes before the cancer becomes life threatening. There are treatments, however, including chemotherapy, radiation, and surgery.
Treatment for prostate cancer, especially surgery, is often horrifying to men because at one time it was considered a death sentence for a man’s sex life. Surgery would commonly leave a man unable to achieve an erection suitable for intercourse. The problem was that cutting out the prostate often involved cutting through nerves important for creating erections. Not so many years ago, some men would chose to leave the cancer untreated and ultimately die of it rather than live with impotency following treatment.
Ladies, if your man finds out he has prostate cancer and is balking at treatment for some unspecified reason, you need to find out if it is fear of impotency. Because the fact is that between new surgical techniques (nerve-sparing) and erectile dysfunction drugs (Viagra, Cialis, Levitra), impotency is no longer an inevitable result. Many prostate cancer survivors today enjoy a healthy sex life.
These are the things for you to remember:
- If your man is stoically suffering with urinary symptoms, get him to see a doctor. Even if he tries to hide his symptoms from you, you can tell if he’s getting up often in the night to urinate, and you can listen to hear if his urinary stream is strong or weak.
- Make sure he gets a regular physical, and that he is getting a PSA test during his physical. They’re only about $75.
- If your man is diagnosed with prostate cancer, don’t let an unreasonable fear of impotency cloud his judgment regarding treatment options. If possible, find a local support group and encourage him to talk to actual survivors.
