Cobalt Unit Appeal Fund - Cancer Prevention Services

Prostate Cancer

Symptoms

Less common symptoms

Anyone who has difficulty passing urine, or who notices a change in the way they pass urine, should go to their doctor for an examination.


	Risk factors Prostate cancer is unusual in the under-50s. The rates increase sharply with age. Over 90% of deaths from prostate cancer occur in men aged over 65. It is generally a disease of the developed Western world and there is evidence to suggest that men of African descent are at greater risk than white men. Men living in the USA or Western Europe are many times more likely to have prostate cancer than those living in Japan or China. Prostate cancer can run in families. The risk of developing prostate cancer increases if there is a first-degree relative (father or brother) who was diagnosed with prostate cancer at a young age. Having an elderly relative with prostate cancer is not uncommon and does not increase the risk. In a small number of cases, prostate cancer runs in families because of a faulty BRCA2 gene. Men who eat diets low in fat and high in green vegetables are less likely to have prostate cancer. Over exposure to cadmium and x-rays increase the risk of prostate cancer.


	How is Prostate Cancer diagnosed?
	The only way to feel the prostate gland is by a digital rectal examination. The doctor wears a glove and uses plenty of jelly. The examination should be quite painless, if undignified. This rectal examination has for years been the gold standard for detecting prostate cancer as well as the non-cancerous disorder benign prostatic hyperplasia. Family doctors can also do a blood test to measure the PSA (prostate specific antigen) levels. A positive result is not necessarily an indicator of a cancer. (For more information on PSA click on the arrow below and refer to page 3 of the prostate cancer factsheet) Transrectal ultrasound is reported to be more sensitive than a rectal examination but not enough to be the only detection tool. To confirm the diagnosis of prostate cancer a small piece of tissue is removed for examination (a biopsy). This will be performed in hospital under anaesthetic. Body scans may also be needed to see if the cancer has spread.

to view our Prostate Cancer
factsheet containing
detailed information.

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What is the Cobalt Appeal Fund doing to help local people fight prostate cancer?


	The Charity has helped fund a new treatment option called Brachytherapy What is Brachytherapy? - low dose radioactive "seeds" each about the size of a grain of rice are implanted within the prostate at the precise site of the cancer. The seeds work on the cancer over the coming weeks and months. Due to the short amount of time required in hospital and that brachytherapy works directly within the cancer - it is considered to be less traumatic and have less side effects than other treatments available The Cobalt Appeal Fund is funding a 2 year research project into the use of Ramon Spectroscopy to provide an objective method to diagnose prostate and bladder cancer. Mr Hugh Gilbert, Consultant Urologist at Cheltenham General Hospital is leading the Optical Diagnosis in Urology project.

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