Prostate Cancer: About Prostate Cancer
About Prostate Cancer In Phoenix
Phoenix CyberKnife is a stereotactic radiation treatment center of excellence, deploying the most advanced and precise radiation treatment technologies available. Our board-certified radiation oncologists work with your medical team to determine the best possible treatment options for your prostate cancer. With CyberKnife, you can have the most precise technology available that can attack your cancerous cells, while leaving healthy surrounding tissue unharmed. CyberKnife can even track the prostate tumor, which can move erratically, throughout the treatment process.
What Is Prostate Cancer?
The prostate is a small gland in men that is located directly under the bladder and in front of the rectum. Because of its location near the urethra, which processes urine out of the body, and its function as part of the reproductive system, cancer of the prostate can entail some complications.
Prostate cancer happens when abnormal cells in the gland form and rapidly accumulate. Prostate cancer affects one in seven men and is the most frequent type of cancer found in men, second only to skin cancer. However, it is also one of the most curable cancers when found early, before it has metastasized to other parts of the body. Approximately 92% of prostate cancers are found during this early stage, making survival rates high. About 99% of men with early stages of prostate cancer live at least five years after diagnosis and 98% live 10 years after. Because it is so common, prostate cancer is still the second leading cause of cancer death in men in the U.S.
The most common type of prostate cancer is called adenocarcinoma, accounting for more than 90% of the cases. There are a few subtypes of adenocarcinoma, but they are all treated the same. The other 10% of prostate cancers may be one of six other types of rare cancer.
Symptoms of Prostate Cancer
There is an urgency to detect prostate cancer early when it can still be cured, but the fact is most men don’t have any symptoms before they are diagnosed. That is why most doctors recommend that men age 50 and older have an annual physical, including a PSA test to check the level of prostate-specific antigen and rectal exam. For African American men or those with family history of prostate cancer, this screening exam should start at age 45. It is important to note that the PSA tests have a high percentage of false positives and it’s not always prudent to automatically have a biopsy. If your urologist or primary care doctor in Phoenix detects elevated PSA levels, you have some options:
- Biopsy. If you show other symptoms of prostate cancer, such as a tumor that your doctor can feel during a rectal exam or any of the advanced prostate cancer symptoms mentioned below, your doctor will likely schedule a biopsy of the mass.
- Re-test. Your doctor may ask you to take another PSA test in six months and additional tests every so often to see if your PSA levels trend upward. If they do, you may want to consider a biopsy.
- Watchful waiting. The majority of prostate cancers grow very slowly and sometimes unnecessary biopsies could cause problems with urination or sexual dysfunction, so doctors may suggest waiting to start any treatment and watching the progress.
The following are advanced symptoms of prostate cancer. If you have any of these symptoms, you should contact your doctor right away.
- Difficulty urinating. Talk to your doctor if you’re having trouble urinating, or if you notice that your urine stream comes out slowly.
- Pain and aching. If you feel pain in your pelvic area or in your thighs, hips, or lower back, make a doctor’s appointment. Also, talk to your doctor if you feel unexplained pain that feels like it’s in your bones.
- Erectile dysfunction. Erectile dysfunction doesn’t mean that you have prostate cancer. However, because of how it can impact your quality of life, it’s always worth discussing with your doctor.
- Observance of blood. Call your doctor if you notice blood in your urine stream or blood in your semen.
Make The Call To Phoenix CyberKnife Center Today
If you have been diagnosed with prostate cancer, or have any questions about the symptoms of prostate cancer, please give us a call at (602) 441-3845 for a free phone consultation. Our board certified cancer specialists are available to answer all of your questions and explain how Phoenix CyberKnife can effectively treat your prostate cancer without surgery and without pain. Or, use our convenient online messaging form to send us your questions, or schedule your first appointment. We are here to help you fight your prostate cancer and CyberKnife is a proven treatment to do just that.
Use these links to find out more about prostate cancer: