Understanding Prostate Cancer and Treatment

The prostate is a small gland in the male pelvis, which is part of the reproductive system. The prostate is located below the bladder in front of the rectum. The prostate gland surrounds the urethra, the canal that carries urine from the bladder to the penis.Prostate produces fluid that helps nourish and protect the sperm. When ejaculation, prostate secrete this fluid to the urethra. Fluid emitted will flow along with the sperm as semen.

There is a prostate cancer that is aggressive and can spread quickly. But in general, prostate cancer grows slowly and does not spread.According to WHO data, prostate cancer is the most common cancer in men second. It is estimated that about 1.1 million men worldwide are diagnosed with prostate cancer and there were 307,000 deaths in 2012.Cases of prostate cancer, based on data from the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC), in 2012 in Indonesia there are about 13,600 cases. With a mortality rate of up to 9,191 cases.

Symptoms of Prostate Cancer
 
Prostate cancer may not cause any symptoms in the early stages. Symptoms of prostate cancer will occur when the prostate is too large or swollen and beginning to affect the urethra. Some of the signs and symptoms that arise when this happens is:

• More frequent urination, especially at night
• Feel pain during urination
• Feeling the bladder is always full
• Blood in the urine or semen
• Reduced pressure while passing urine

Typically, signs and symptoms of prostate cancer will appear when the cancer has spread beyond the prostate. But the symptoms are not always caused by prostate cancer. The above conditions can be caused by a urinary tract infection.

Until now, the causes of prostate cancer is still unknown. But heredity or genetics and age a person can increase the risk of prostate cancer.

Prostate Cancer Diagnosis
There are many tests and tests to determine the diagnosis of prostate cancer. The most common test to detect prostate cancer are:

• Physical examination or a digital rectal examination. This check is performed to examine the size of the prostate gland.
• Blood tests. This blood test is known as a PSA test (prostate-specific antigen or prostate specific antigen). But the test is not specific only to detect prostate cancer since PSA levels can also rise due to other conditions such as urinary tract infection or inflammation of the prostate.
• Biopsy. Samples of prostate tissue is removed for examination in a laboratory.
• Prostate Cancer Treatment
• The earlier prostate cancer is diagnosed, the greater the chance the patient to recover fully. But if the cancer is still in its very early stages and does not cause any symptoms, the patient can choose to beware of them alone.

Treatment of prostate cancer is through surgical removal of the prostate and radiotherapy.However, if the cancer is detected when it has spread to the bone, for example, then the cancer can not be cured. Treatment is done merely to prolong life and relieve symptoms.

Prostate Cancer Treatment
For patients with prostate cancer, it may be confusing to choose the best treatment procedures that can be done. Each treatment is done at risk and also the respective advantages masing.Pengobatan prostate cancer
depends on several factors:

• stage of cancer
• size cancer
• How wide spread of cancer that have occurred
• And the patient's health condition

For patients with prostate cancer at an early stage, they can choose to wait and oversee the development of cancer. There were some cases of prostate cancer that does not require treatment at all and need to be considered as side effects of treatment were classified as significant. If you select to monitor prostate cancer, then during the period of supervision, additional information may be collected to help determine the appropriate treatment.

The prostate supervision requires you to undergo a PSA test and biopsy procedures are also regularly. This is done to ensure early as possible if there is growth of cancer cells. The series of these procedures are done to determine the treatment according to the stage of cancer, especially when prostate cancer has spread outside of the prostate gland.
Here are a few ways of handling prostate cancer are recommended:

Prostate cancer surgery
 
Here are some ways and procedures that can be done to overcome prostate cancer.

TURP or trans-urethral resection
TURP is a surgical procedure to cut out part of the prostate gland. TURP is done by general anesthesia or spinal anesthesia, so you do not feel pain during the surgery took place. The goal of surgery is alleviate or eliminate symptoms of disturbed urination due to prostate

The surgeon will insert iron wires with a circular section at the end into the urethra to the prostate. Electric current is used to heat the circular section that serves to cut prostate cancer.

Radical prostatectomy
Radical prostatectomy is a surgical procedure to remove the prostate gland and surrounding tissue. Radical prostatectomy can cure prostate cancer in men if the cancer has not spread outside of the prostate gland. But there is a small chance that not all cancer cells can be lifted. There is the possibility of cancer will return after surgery.

Some of the potential complications of radical prostatectomy procedures are:

• Urinary incontinence, the inability to control urination.
• Erectile dysfunction. Better known as impotence. Inability to achieve and maintain an erection.
• Can no longer ejaculation so could not have a child through sexual intercourse.

Radiotherapy
Radiotherapy uses radiation energy to kill cancer cells in cases where the cancer has not spread beyond the prostate. Radiotherapy can also be used after surgery to kill any cancer cells remaining. In addition, radiotherapy is also done to relieve symptoms or pain and slowing the rate of progression of cancer at his advanced cancer cases.

The patient does not need to be hospitalized to undergo radiotherapy procedure. The following are some side effects of radiotherapy for prostate cancer:

• Pubic hair loss
• feeling exhausted
• Feel uncomfortable around the anus and rectum
• Inflammation of the bladder
• Inability to have an erection
• urinary incontinence
• Problems with defecation, such as diarrhea and bleeding
• hormone therapy

Hormone therapy is usually combined with radiotherapy procedures. Hormone therapy is performed before radiotherapy aims to improve treatment success. While hormone therapy is given after radiotherapy intended to reduce the recurrence of cancer cells.In addition to the above functions, hormone therapy can also be used to slow the progression of end-stage prostate cancer and relieve symptoms or pain that appears.

The side effects of hormone therapy in prostate cancer are:

• Loss of sexual desire
• erectile dysfunction
• Weight gain
• swelling chest
• Hot flush
• sweat

Steroid tablets can be used if the hormone therapy no longer works because the cancer is resistant to the hormone. Steroids can be used to shrink tumors and inhibit tumor growth.

Treating Late Stage Cancer
When prostate cancer has entered the final stage, then this condition can no longer be cured. Treatment is done only to slow the progression, prolong life and relieve symptoms.

To cope with late-stage prostate cancer, treatment can be done is radiotherapy, hormone therapy, chemotherapy.

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