World Prostate Cancer Day is commemorated on June 11, with the aim of raising awareness of this disease and the importance of knowing the risk factors and early diagnosis.
According to the American Cancer Society (ACS) staging, an estimated 1,414,259 people were diagnosed with prostate cancer in 2020 worldwide. It is the fourth most commonly diagnosed cancer in men worldwide.
Approximately 84% of prostate cancers are detected when the disease is found only in the prostate and nearby organs. This is known as local or regional stage. The 5-year survival rate for most people with local or regional prostate cancer is nearly 100%. For people diagnosed with prostate cancer that has spread to other parts of the body, the 5-year survival rate is 31%.
In general, early stage prostate cancer has no symptoms, that is, it is asymptomatic. However, more advanced ones can cause:
- Urination problems, including a slow, weakened urinary flow or the need to urinate more frequently, especially at night.
- Blood in the urine.
- Difficulty in achieving an erection (erectile dysfunction).
- Pain in the hips, back (spine), chest (ribs) or other areas, due to cancer that has spread to the bones.
- Weakness or numbness of the legs or feet, or even loss of bladder or bowel control.
It is essential to be alert to these symptoms, and to be aware of the importance of going to the doctor at any warning sign, as the fear or embarrassment of rectal examination, the reluctance to go to the doctor waiting for the last minute can lead to a late diagnosis.
Once the cancer has been detected, some treatments that stand out according to the medical procedure and the type of degree of lesion in each patient are:
- Surgical intervention for the removal of the prostate (open prostatectomy).
- Radiotherapy.
- Cryotherapy.
- Hormone therapy.
- Chemotherapy.
- Immunotherapy.
- Follow-up of prostate-specific antigen (PSA) levels by laboratory analysis.
Panama Cancer Clinic has the commitment, resources and multidisciplinary team to perform the usual controls that allow the early detection of prostate cancer as well as the appropriate approach to this disease.
