PROSTATE cancer is one of the most common cancers in men — but not everyone knows their risk.
King Charles earned praise for breaking with royal tradition by yesterday sharing details of a surgery he is having for an enlarged prostate next week.
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Although the 75-year-old’s condition is benign and he does not have cancer, he is urging all men with similar symptoms to get checked.
Cancer charities praised the monarch for helping to “shine a light” on prostate conditions that are often seen as taboo.
The NHS advice website for prostate enlargement more than 11 times the number of visitors following his diagnosis.
On Wednesday, the day of the Palace announcement, the page received 16,410 visits compared with 1,414 visits on Tuesday – a 1061 per cent increase.
Prostate Cancer UK said it saw a 61 per cent rise in traffic to its online cancer risk checker after the royal.
And the Google search score for “prostate” shot up from around 10 earlier in the week to 100 in the hours after the monarch’s news broke.
Ali Orhan, of men’s cancer charity Orchid, said: “With a figurehead such as King Charles coming forward and speaking so openly about this condition, it helps to normalise it.
“It shows men that this illness is not a sign of weakness, even a King can have a condition like this.”
Around one in three men over 50 will develop an enlarged prostate, which is a gland that sits behind the bladder.
Symptoms include difficulty urinating, frequently needing to urinate, and problems emptying the bladder.
Prostate cancer is diagnosed more than 52,000 times a year and can cause similar symptoms.
It kills more than 12,000 men annually but you are much more likely to be cured if it is caught early.
Alongside the previously mentioned symptoms, other signs of the disease include needing to rush to the toilet, straining while peeing, hesitancy when peeing, and weak flow.
Blood in urine or semen can also be a sign.
While the causes of the disease are largely unknown, you are more at risk as you get older, with the disease more common in men over 50.
Prostate cancer is more common in black men and less common in Asian men.
You are also more likely to develop it if another male family member has suffered the disease.
Studies also suggest you are more at risk if you are obese.
There is no single test for prostate cancer but your doctor can check for the disease through a combination of blood tests and physical examination of the prostate, known as digital rectal examination.
If tests suggest you have the disease, you may also be given an MRI scan or biopsy to confirm it.
Not all men who have prostate cancer are given treatment, with doctors preferring to keep it under “active surveillance” if it is at an early stage and not causing symptoms.
Because the disease progresses very slowly, many patients can live for decades without it impacting their lives.
Treatments include surgery to remove the prostate and radiotherapy, which can both cause side effects like erectile dysfunction and losing control of your bladder.
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If you are worried about your risk of prostate cancer, you can take Prostate Cancer UK’s 30-second risk-checker test here.
If you want to check your risk of an enlarged prostate, take Boston Scientific’s test here.
What is an enlarged prostate?
The prostate is a small gland, located in the pelvis, between the penis and bladder.
THE prostate is a small gland found in the pelvis between the penis and the bladder.
If it becomes enlarged, it can put pressure on the bladder and the urethra – the tube that urine passes through.
The medical term for an enlarged prostate is benign prostatic enlargement (BPE).
It may affect how you go to the toilet. You might notice you have:
- Difficulty starting to pee
- A frequent need to pee, especially at night
- Problems fully emptying your bladder
- A weak flow
- Dribbling urine after you finish
- A sudden urge to urinate
An enlarged prostate is very common in men over the age of 50.
It is not cancerous, and it is not usually serious, though some men require treatment to lessen their symptoms.
This might include medication or surgery.
Most sufferers are also encouraged to drink less alcohol and exercise more.
The exact cause isn’t known, but doctors believe it is linked to hormonal changes due to age.
Complications are rare, but include urinary tract infections (UTIs), chronic urinary retention (when you cannot empty your bladder fully), and acute urinary retention (the sudden inability to pass any urine).
Source: The NHS