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Benign Prostate Growth and Prostate Cancer

Benign Prostate Growth and Prostate Cancer

Edited by: TOP DOCTORS® at 10/10/2023

Most of the time prostate cancer is asymptomatic, if they appear to appear symptoms are similar to those of benign growth of the prostate.

Dr. Arturo Mendoza Valdés

Most of the time prostate cancer has no symptoms. The symptoms of prostate cancer, if any, are similar to those of benign prostate growth, which affects 10% of men aged 40 years, 60% of those aged 50 years and 90% of men. 80 years. Throughout the life only 1 of every 3 men come to have symptoms (to urinate often, urgently or often at night) that require some type of treatment. Sixty to seventy percent of patients requiring treatment respond well to medication and only one-third require treatment with surgery.

Prostate cancer screening and treatment options

On the other hand, in order to detect prostate cancer, it is necessary to determine the level of the prostate-specific antigen (PSA) in blood and also to perform the rectal examination, which is not an obsolete study, is still valid. This is proven because between 10 and 20% of the cases the APE may not show signs of cancer and, nevertheless, the rectal digital touch, it is possible to detect a hard or suspicious zone of cancer.

When prostate cancer is suspected, either by touch or by elevated APE, the next step is to perform a transrectal ultrasound by obtaining prostate biopsies guided by ultrasound. Ultrasound underneath the navel (suprapubic) is not used to detect cancer, it is only used to know the size of the prostate and the amount of urine left in the bladder after urination (residual urine). When the cancer is diagnosed by biopsies, if it is of a low degree of aggressiveness and is confined to the prostate, the chances of being cured by surgery or other alternatives (radiotherapy, brachytherapy, photodynamic therapy, cryotherapy, active surveillance) are above 90%. In summary, if the patient does not have cancer and only has urinary symptoms due to the benign growth of his prostate, he will be cured with medicines. If you do not have symptoms and only your prostate is full, you do not need any treatment. If it turns out that the patient has cancer it can be cured. That is, of all, it will go well. The important thing is to go to the urologist for review.

Urology in Tlalpan