Though “Movember” is coming to an end, it’s important keep men’s health as a priority through out the year. Our Cooper experts share why.
Ashish Patel, MD
Radiation Oncologist
- Prostate cancer detected early has excellent outcomes. If you are experiencing any of the following symptoms: urinary frequency or urgency, difficultly starting urination, weak stream, pain or burning when urinating, blood in the urine or semen, erectile dysfunction, painful ejaculation, decreased amount of ejaculate, or pain/stiffness in the low back, hips, or pelvis, please contact your primary care physician to be evaluated.
- Want to reduce your risk of getting prostate cancer? Reducing the amount of high fat and high processed carbohydrate foods in your diet can LOWER your risk. Men who are overweight are at greater risk of developing an aggressive form of prostate cancer.
Robert A. Somer, MD
Head, Division of Hematology/Medical Oncology
- One in nine men will have prostate cancer during their lifetime, and it is the second leading cause of cancer deaths among American men and the most common cancer in males. The American Cancer Society estimates that 164,690 men will be told that they have prostate cancer in 2018. Nearly 2.9 million men are living with the disease!
- Early detection of cancer can save lives. Finding prostate cancer when it is still at an early stage offers the best hope for a potential cure. Because of PSA (Prostate-Specific Antigen) screening and early detection, the five year survival rate for men with prostate cancer is nearly 100 percent. Get yourself screened!
- All men are at risk of developing prostate cancer, though the risk increases significantly as a man ages. For instance, up until the age of 49, a man only has a 1 out of 403 chance of developing prostate cancer, and between the ages of 50 to 59, the chance increases to 1 in 58. Men 70 years of age and older have a 1 in 12 chance.
- Unfortunately, African American men have the highest risk of developing prostate cancer in the United States, and also have the greatest chance of dying from prostate cancer, even when risk factors are taken into account. Asian men have the lowest risk of prostate cancer in the United States.
- Your age, race and family history contributes to your risk of developing prostate cancer. About two-thirds of all prostate cancers are diagnosed in men 65 years of age and older. Prostate cancer occurs about 60 percent more often in African-American men than in white American men and when diagnosed, the cancer is more likely to be advanced. Having a brother or father with the disease more than doubles your risk for prostate cancer.
Andres Correa, MD
Urologist
- Testis (testicular) cancer is one of the most curable cancers. Early detection is paramount. Men between the ages of 15 to 35 should perform monthly self-examinations looking for lumps or nodules in the testicle or the scrotum.
- When managed by a prostate cancer specialist, testosterone replacement therapy for men with a history of prostate cancer does not increase recurrence rates following radical treatment or progression rate after placement on active surveillance.
- PSA (Prostate-Specific Antigen) levels in men between the ages of 45 and 55 can aid in detecting those at risk of developing high risk prostate cancer. A PSA of less than 1 in men younger than age 55 should be evaluated by a qualified specialist.
- In patients with bladder cancer, smoking cessation is the most important intervention to reduce the risk of recurrence and progression.
Jeffrey J. Tomaszewski, MD
Urologist
Director, Genitourinary Oncology Center
- Testicular cancer is a leading cancer in men aged 15-44, so much so that every hour a male is diagnosed, and every day a life is lost from testicular cancer. Testicular cancer can spread rapidly and is deadly if left untreated, but is curable 95 percent of the time when detected early. So what should you do? “Feel your nuts!” Monthly self-exams can detect testicular cancer early, before it’s too late. You should see a physician right away if you feel anything out of the ordinary.
- About five to ten percent of all prostate cancers run in families. Prostate cancer tends to be more aggressive in men who have certain inherited genetic mutations compared with men without these inherited mutations. To find out if you have a genetic mutation linked to prostate cancer, you can take a simple blood or saliva test. If you have prostate cancer along with a family history of breast, colon, ovarian, pancreatic or prostate cancer, you should talk to your doctor about possible genetic testing.
My husband has been diagnosed with prostate cancer. From reading, I see that erectile dysfunction is a clue. He’s had ED for years, maybe 5-6 years. His PSA was consistently high, around 5.5 to 5.8, really higher and lower, but in that range. His family physician told him he should not get biopsies done until his PSA reached the double digits, so we weren’t worried. My husband’s new family doctor referred my husband to a urologist. My husband was stubborn about it, so the urologist kept checking the PSA every 6 months, which recently spiked to 7.4. Biopsies were done. Five out of ten are cancer, all a 7 on the Gleason Scale. Four are inside, one is “in the front.” My concern is that my husband’s PSA shouldn’t have been dismissed by his previous family physician. We may not have wound up in this situation.
My husband had a CT scan of the pelvis, and a full body scan yesterday, August 26, 2020. We’re now waiting for the results. We live in Delaware, in the Rehoboth Beach area.
After receiving the results, we’ll be looking into treatment options.
Doctors should be strongly encouraging their patients with ED and high PSA to get biopsied. My husband’s cancer could have been detected much earlier!