Prostate cancer is one of the most common forms of cancer found in men; however, many men with prostate cancer never get it detected, never undergo any treatment for it, and often die of causes other than cancer. The reason: prostate cancer is a very slow growing carcinoma, and often develops no symptoms. Moreover, since it occurs in relatively older men, they have a chance of dying from other causes before the prostate cancer has a chance to mature.

These kinds of prostate cancer are called “pussycats” in some parlance. The reason is that they tend to be mild in nature, are slow growing, and although they can be potentially dangerous, in most cases they are not so.

In contrast, there are prostate cancers called “tigers” and these have a very high growth potential. They can quickly develop symptoms, metastasize to other parts of the body, especially to the bones and the lymph system, and can be very dangerous.

Prostate cancer in a developing stage can create many problems. It can cause erectile dysfunction, problem having a sexual intercourse, pain during urination, and a host of other problems. Prostate cancer is usually diagnosed with a biopsy, which gives the patient a Gleason score. The higher a Gleason score, the more developed is the cancer.

Prostate cancer can be caused by various factors, including your genetic constitution. It is supposed to be caused by the lack of certain forms of diet rich in vitamins; it is supposed to be caused by excessive exposure to certain medications; even your rate of ejaculation in the early twenties is supposed to be linked to prostate cancer.

Prostate cancer is all too common in men, and it is important that any pain in the prostate region be immediately diagnosed. Although it lacks too many symptoms, that itself makes prostate cancer dangerous because symptoms are a way for the body to indicate to you that there is a problem somewhere.

If knowledge and information is power then there is a lack of knowledge and power when it comes to people and cancer. It seems everyone is afraid of cancer, and rightfully so, but people aren’t even sure what they are afraid of. You might look at cancer as a black and white topic: either you die from it or you don’t but the truth is that cancer brings many different complications. And, just like there are electronic cigarette cartridges as an alternative to the usual cigarettes you know there are different ways to fight cancer than what you might be thinking of, and this is exactly the case with prostate cancer.

Most men over 30 start getting tested for prostate cancer. This is just a routine part of a physical for men. A doctor inserts his finger rectally and checks the prostate. If there are tell-tale signs that something might be wrong (and this is always accompanied with a drug test) then he will be faced with two very distinct options. The first option is that he fight it through radiation and the other is that he remove the prostate altogether.

Now there are things to think about when going with prostate removal, which in most cases is the safest and most effective method for getting rid of the cancer and stopping the spread of the disease. You should know that you may lose the function of your penis as a sex organ and impotence is also a problem of losing your prostate. The other thing that is worth noting is that unless you are diligent about doing exercises to strengthen your bladder after surgery you may end up with a bladder problem which will increase your need to wear incontinence protection. There is more to prostate cancer than life or death.

A diagnosis of prostate cancer is never good news to a man. However, with present and emerging therapies, the prognosis need not be as dire as it once was. There are a wide range of treatment options available to the patient. Numerous factors need to be considered when selecting the most appropriate course of action, including the stage or severity of the cancer, one’s age and individual lifestyle.

At an early-stage level of the disease, discussions with your doctor may involve one of three possible options including surgery, a form of radiation treatment or even watchful waiting. The last is not strictly a form of treatment, but in some cases may be the most optimum way of managing and living with a non-aggressive tumor. Other treatments for prostate cancer include chemotherapy and hormone therapy. Each has it’ particular benefits and drawbacks and should be thoroughly discussed with the physician.

As for radiation treatment, two possible courses include brachytherapy in which radioactive pellets or “seeds” are placed in or close to the tumor, and external beam radiation. In external beam radiation, the cancer receives radiation from a device located close to but outside the body. A newer form of radiation therapy, proton beam therapy has an advantage of pinpointing and delivering treatment specifically to the tumor. Unfortunately, this treatment is not commonly available, is expensive, and in many cases your health insurance will probably not cover you any better than pet insurance would for this particular procedure.

However, palliative therapies now bring relief to those dealing with common side effects of treatments. Furthermore, clinical trials of new drug treatments provide additional hope for those battling this disease at every level. Through testing, physician advice and expert guidance and discussions with one’s support group, a course of treatment can be found to maximize success in dealing with prostate cancer.

Cancer is a terrible disease; anyone who has had a close family member or friend suffer from cancer knows how mentally and physically devastating it can be. It literally makes the body rot right before your eyes, and there is nothing you can do about it. That helplessness is the single most important fact about cancer.

As a disease, cancer is a big irony because it is caused by the malfunction of one of our body’s most critical self-preservation capabilities – rejuvenation. If an area on your skin, say, is wounded – what happens? The surrounding skin cells start multiplying, growing, and in this manner they patch up the wound, rejuvenate and heal it. This is the same healing mechanism that is triggered by wounds in any part of the body, and this is the same healing mechanism which, when it goes awry, causes cancer. This is a simplistic definition, but cancer is the unrestrained growth of body cells triggered by a misplaced effort to heal a wound. If you look at it this way, it is the very same mechanism that heals, and kills. And how it kills.

Very little is really known about cancer, despite the billions spent every year in research, and despite those brilliant minds getting paid millions to do that research. While one wonders about the kind of cancer that has spread to medical research aptitude to degenerate a field of study that once produced a Waksman or a Fleming, it is a fact that cancer is a very little known entity, with no real medicines discovered yet. What little is known tells us that there are 3 aspects that distinguish cancer from benign growth – uncontrolled growth as described above, invasion (destruction of surrounding cells) and metastasis, or the spread of malignancy to other parts of the body through lymph or blood.

Certain substances, known as carcinogens, are known to trigger cancer. the list continues to grow; but Nicotine is one of them. Cancer causes about 10% of the world’s deaths in an average year.

Cancer research has evolved; from making cancer a preventable disease to providing vaccines to fight cancer-causing infections, studies have made cancer less of a monster and more of a curable disease. People are faced with many choices of treatments, and one such choice is complimentary and alternative medicine (CAM). CAM methods are not part of standard care; they are not oncologist-prescribed methods. These are more faith-based and standard science tends to keep away from them. Because scientific researchers know less of these non-standard medicines than they do of other standard procedures, it is always good to check with your doctor before starting on CAM.

People mainly choose CAM treatments because it helps them cope up with side effects of cancer-treatment like nausea, pain and fatigue. It also helps to reduce stress due to the various treatments. For example, many people believe that acupuncture can help reduce nausea and pain that arise due to treatments from cancer. So, acupuncture is a complementary medicine. Complementary medicine is used along with standard medicine. Sometimes people take up an alternative medicine to treat their cancer, which is different from standard procedures like radiation, chemotherapy, surgery etc. For example, using special diet to cure cancer instead of a scientific method suggested by your oncologist is alternative medicine. And, there are others who combine everything, say, by using relaxation techniques during a chemotherapy session and trying a holistic approach. That’s an integrative medicine.

Treatments of cancer involve many facets: understanding the patient, their comfort level, their response to treatments, the stage they are in and what they really want out of their treatments. In most cases an oncologist can understand if you want to combine certain alternative medicine practices with standard procedures. But it is important to discuss this with them. For, natural may not mean safe. A natural vitamin from your alternative medicine practitioner can actually harm and hinder your oncologist’s treatment. Sometimes high doses of vitamins can have adverse effect.

So, before you leap with eyes shut, gather information on the practices that are safe and whether you can trust them or not.

There is no single symptom for cancer. The principal reason for this is that cancer can occur in any part of the body, and depending on where it occurs, symptoms can be presented in a certain way. So, it is hard to pin point one catch all symptom for cancer, and thorough diagnosis of cancer is never symptomatic.

However, certain things are common to the growth of many types of cancer. Pain that never goes away, a very constant pain is often associated with cancer. The pain can be deep inside the body, or peripherally; however, no other cause for the pain can be found by simple study. If you have an unidentifiable pain like this, it is important to consider cancer.

The other symptom often associated with cancer is a tumor. Tumors are fleshy growths within or outside the body. There can be benign tumors; growths that do not go through the 3 distinguishing characteristics of cancer – uncontrolled growth, invasion and metastasis. Almost everyone has a tumor or two somewhere in the body; but a malignant tumor is one which presents oncogenic symptoms of growth.

If you have a tumor that does not look right, and causes pain, it is important to test for cancer.

Cancer almost always requires a pathological evaluation, which often involves a biopsy. A biopsy is the extraction of a small amount of body material – often just a few cells – for examination under a microscope to look for cancerous cells. Some biopsies can be done right in a doctor’s office, others require anesthesia and surgery.

Once the biopsy is done, a pathologist conducts a histological examination of the cells. A biopsy indicates the kind of proliferation in the cell, the grade of metastasis, genetic anomalies that are present and may be causal to the cancer, and a host of other data.

Such data is important for prognosis, or the determination of the kinds of treatment that would be required to cure, contain or otherwise treat the cancer.

Breast cancer affects one in eight women. It is one of the top killers of cancer-related deaths among women in the United States. If you began your periods before the age of 12 or going through menopause after the age of 55, your chances of breast cancer just became strong. Added to these being overweight, drinking alcohol, not having children, or having your first child after the age of 35, using hormone replacement therapy, taking oral contraceptives all increase your chance of breast cancer. And although men can have breast cancer too, the numbers are minimal.

When the cells in your breast go haywire, it’s an indication of bad things to come. Of course, you will not know that immediately. But, keeping a watch for lump or pain in your breast, or a change in the sizes of the breast suggests symptoms of breast cancer. At this stage, it would be beneficial for you to get a clinical breast examination done or a mammogram to rule out the possibilities of breast cancer.

Mammograms have always been hailed as a good indicator of breast cancer. They can most often show breast lumps before they can be felt. A mammogram helps in detecting even small tumors. But, sometimes it can detect tumors when they are not present and vice versa, but these hitches are very few in number. Women with breast implants and dense breasts who are breast feeding or pregnant can also give out wrong results through a mammogram. Every woman after they cross 40 years of age should routinely screen for breast cancer through a mammogram, self-breast exam or through clinical breast exams.

Today, researches are being done to make cancer a curable disease. Many cancers are already on the road to becoming preventable, but not breast cancer. However, you can lower the risk of breast cancer by bringing a change in your lifestyle, food, and avoiding post-menopausal hormone therapy etc. Early detection increases the chance of survival and successful treatment of breast cancer. Thus following doctor’s guidelines and regular checkup can improve the chances of treating breast cancer successfully.

It’s common knowledge that in the United States, among cancer-related deaths, prostate cancer ranks the second highest after skin cancer. But, drinking green tea may prevents this cancer may not be such a common knowledge. Prostate cancer is a type of cancer that develops in the prostate gland of the male reproductive system. It is quite a tricky cancer as patients may be moving from early stages of the disease to the advanced stage and yet not be aware of it for lack of symptoms. This cancer usually develops in men over fifty years of age, and because of it slow progressive nature, most men tend to die of other natural causes rather than of this particular disease. Well, that’s no relief, because in case symptoms are perceived, it can be as excruciating as any other cancer pain, with added problems like difficulty in urinating, problems during sexual intercourse, and erectile dysfunction etc.

Coming back to what was said earlier, researchers have found out that the polyphenols in green tea and red wine are found to inhibit the growth of prostate cancer. The best way to stop cancer growth is to prevent the growth of the cancerous cells, which is what the antioxidants in these drinks do. They produce an effect that stops the signal for growth of these cancer cells. It is a milestone in cancer research as it could lead to potential development of drugs that help prevent, stop, or even cure prostate cancer. In fact, researchers believe that drinking green tea and red wine are not only effective for prostate cancer, but can also help with other cancers like colon, breast and gastric cancers.

Genetics and diet play an important role in the cause of prostate cancer. While handling the genetics part is not in the individual’s hands, diet surely is. That is why men diagnosed with this particular cancer are usually advised to make changes in their lifestyle and in their diet. It’s time then to replace high-sugar content beverages and alcohol with the healthier green tea and red wine for a better quality of life.

Consider this. In 2010 alone, about 217,730 cases of prostate cancer will be diagnosed. 32,050 is the number of men who will die of prostate cancer. About one in every six men will be diagnosed with prostate cancer during his lifetime. Does the statistics scare you? Let’s look at the other side of the coin. Only one in 36 men actually die of prostate cancer. More than two million men in America diagnosed with prostate cancer are still alive. Final verdict: only 11% of cancer-related deaths are due to prostate cancer. So, anyone diagnosed with prostate cancer has a 100% chance of surviving five years from when diagnosed, with 91% survival rate that cross a 10-year period and almost 76% surviving chances of more than 15 years. Now that a positive picture of prostate cancer has been drawn, let’s find out who are the men more at risk of this disease? Being male is not the only reason, however, for getting prostate cancer. Other factors include age, family history, race, and diet.

Age is undoubtedly the greatest risk factor in prostate cancer. The chances of men under 50 diagnosed with prostate cancer are slim, but rapidly increase once they touch the half-century mark. In fact, 80% of men over 80 years of age are invariably diagnosed with prostate cancer. Genetic factors too greatly increases the chances of prostate cancer. A brother, father or grandfather, diagnosed with prostate cancer, can increase your chances exponentially.

Surprisingly, ethnicity factors increase the risk of prostate cancer. An African-American has 50% percent increased chances of prostate cancer than his white counterpart. So, an African-American is more likely to get prostate cancer after the age of 40, while chances of a Caucasian white male getting it increases only after the age of 50.

And lastly, diet. A high intake of diet with fat will surely lead to prostate cancer. But, a diet rich in lycopene that’s found in fruits and vegetables, rice, soybean, and food with less fat prevents prostate cancer to a great extent. Also, other factors like sedentary lifestyle, obesity, high testosterone, and history of some benign prostatic disease can also increase your chances of prostate cancer.

February 4th is observed as the World Cancer Day and the message that was shared was cancer is preventable. From being the deadly killer it once was, cancer today has mellowed to become a preventable disease. Experts believe that almost 40% of the cancers that are diagnosed can be prevented.

Prevention of cancer is a possibility, according to the International Union against Cancer (UICC) and the World Health Organization (WHO). But the preventive methods suggested by these organization and researches all over the world do not fit into a capsule yet. They are strategies that include quitting smoking, reducing alcohol intake, avoiding long exposure in the sun, staying fit with exercise, and to protect against infections that causes cancer.

Food habits and choice of food is a major contributor to cancer. Eating at least five portions of vegetables and fruits a day can increase your chance to fight against cancer. And foods that are rich in fats, animal protein, additives, and preservatives will tilt the balance on the other end. Another biggest cancer causing culprit is tobacco. Thanks to tobacco, developing countries owe 30% of cancer-related death to it, with about 80-90% lung cancer deaths caused by it. Therefore, by reducing tobacco consumption, by bringing an awareness of its harmful effects, and by cessation programs, the number of cancer deaths due to smoking can be reduced effectively. Prevention of infection through hepatitis B virus (that can cause liver cancer), HPV (strains that cause cervical cancer) and many others through vaccines can also save many lives.

Cancer looms like a dark shadow, but only till we realize it need not and that the dark cover can be easily removed with slight changes in our attitude and lifestyle. Studies show that cancer kills more people than AIDS, malaria and TB combined. And unfortunately these deaths are not needed, as they can all be prevented. The UICC also stresses the importance of early screening and diagnosis, targeted treatment for infections and to combine with cancer control program, which will result in the prevention of cancer and leave a world without cancer one day.