Enlarged Prostate or Prostate Cancer?

May 24, 2010, By Jeff Waddle 1 comment

Prostatitis

While BPH typically is an affliction of older men, prostatitis or an inflammation of the prostate is most common in men under 50. Whatever you age, you’ve got a 50-50 chance of needing treatment for prostatitis in your lifetime.

Like BPH, prostatitis is not cancer and doesn’t lead to it but it can be painful, stubborn to cure and an all-around inconvenient hassle since it can cause frequent urination and even sexual difficulties. There actually are three types of prostatitis capable of afflicting you, including a bacterial version that can be accompanied by fever, fatigue, lower back pain and aching muscles. It is commonly treated with antibiotics.

Nonbacterial prostatitis symptoms can include pain or discomfort in the prostate area, lower back, testicles, urethra and lower abdomen as well as, you guessed it, difficulty or discomfort urinating. Prostatitis typically is diagnosed through a PSA test (to rule out cancer), DRE, urinalysis and prostate fluid analysis. In addition to antibiotics, anti-inflammatory drugs and surgical procedures can ease symptoms.

Many things can cause prostatitis including drinking too much alcohol, contracting a sexually transmitted disease (STD), having unprotected sex with multiple partners and a recent bladder infection.

Prostate Cancer

Your risk of getting prostate cancer generally increases with age, but family history and even race can increase your odds. Your risk of prostate cancer doubles if your father or another blood male relative get it, and African-American men suffer from the potentially deadly disease at over twice the rate of white men.

Prostate cancer exhibits many of the same symptoms of BPH and prostatitis but in its early stages, you may have only mild or no symptoms at all. It can be detected in early stages through a PSA screening. An abnormal PSA reading may lead to more tests including a biopsy or ultrasound of the prostate.

If caught early enough, prostate cancer is very treatable with several options including surgery to remove the prostate and radiation therapy. Some men experience reduced sexual function and urinary problems, but new, advanced therapies have reduced those side effects in many cases. The key is early detection and treatment.