Prostate Cancer - Know What To Look For And What You Can Do

The prostate gland is located directly beneath the bladder and in front of the rectum. About one man in six will be diagnosed with prostate cancer during his lifetime, but only one man in 34 will die of the disease. Prostate cancer is simply a malignant tumor of the prostate gland.

Many men, especially those later in life have made the decision with their doctors to simply watch and wait. About 80 percent of men who reach the age of 80 have prostate cancer. At an advanced age, the risks of surgery for prostate cancer or other more radical treatments may actually be worse than the disease.

One prostate cancer symptom is difficulty starting urination or holding back urine. Having one or more cancer symptoms does not necessarily mean that you have prostate cancer. One of the most common symptoms is the inability to urinate, get checked right away.

The need to urinate frequently, especially at night is another symptom. There are other symptoms that may not be mentioned here. Some men will experience symptoms that might indicate the presence of prostate cancer.

A urinalysis may indicate if there is blood in the urine, which may or may not be related. A PSA test with a high level can also be from a non-cancerous enlargement of the prostate gland. Another test usually used when prostate cancer symptoms are present is a digital rectal exam (DRE) performed by the doctor, proctologist or oncologist.

A chest x-ray may be done to see if there's a spread of cancer. A bone scan can indicate whether the cancer has spread or not. A number of tests may be done to confirm a diagnosis of prostate cancer.

Prostate cancer that has spread (metastasized) may be treated conventionally with drugs to reduce testosterone levels, surgery to remove the testes, chemotherapy or nothing at all. Since prostate tumors require testosterone to grow, reducing the testosterone level is used to prevent further growth and spread of the cancer. Medicines can be used to adjust the levels of testosterone; called hormonal manipulation.

Treatment options can vary based on the stage of the tumor. Besides hormonal drugs, hormone manipulation may also be done by surgically removing the testes. Surgery, radiation, hormonal therapy and chemotherapy all have significant side effects; know fully what they are before you proceed.

A new therapy is on the forefront that recruits the body's own immune system cells to destroy tumors that could become a new way to treat men with advanced prostate cancer -- if the FDA approves the highly individualized treatment. Side effects of chemotherapy drugs depend on which ones you're taking and how often and how long they're taken. The approaches to treatment include: just ever watchful waiting to see whether the cancer is growing slowly and not causing any symptoms.

The conventional treatment of prostate cancer is often controversial. Recent improvements in surgical procedures have made complications occur less often. Anyone considering surgery should be aware of the benefits, risks and the extent of the procedure.

Supplements that help any disease or ailment include vitamin B12 -- the methylcobalamin type not cyanocobalamin, and sub-lingual -- dissolves slowly under the tongue; and vitamin D3 - especially if you can't get a daily dose of 15 to 20 minutes of sun on your arms and legs so you can make your own vitamin D3. For natural treatment for the prostate make an appointment with a naturopathic doctor, called a naturopath; ask around for referrals. If you're not already doing so, make a serious effort to watch your diet closely.

For snacks, choose raw nuts without salt instead of lifeless roasted nuts. Studies done on antioxidant vitamins question their value when not contained in food; it's clearly better to consume these antioxidants in living foods because they may also need to work with other nutrients present in the foods to work properly. Many men have lowered their PSA levels by eating a diet of living foods.

Eat a lot of fruits and veggies every day, not just a token banana or apple. A good dietary, natural treatment approach is to avoid all acidic inflammatory foods; those are foods that aren't alive. Some foods and beverages to avoid that are inflammatory are: caffeine, salt, sugar, meat, dairy products, additives, soft drinks, white flour, white rice, alcoholic beverages, fast food, processed vegetable oils, and refined, packaged and processed food.

Evidence indicates that many patients detect cancer at an earlier stage because of annual screening, so make sure to get a good exam. The one thing that you should not do however is rely on information obtained from the Internet to make your final decision; double-check everything. Make sure to read everything you can about natural and conventional treatment online and offline.