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Enlarged Prostate – Causes, Symptoms & Treatment Options

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Advanced Urology Prostate Diseases

Enlarged Prostate – Causes, Symptoms & Treatment Options

Enlarged prostate

Enlarged Prostate

An enlarged prostate is a condition that affects men where the prostate gland has increased in size. Clinically defined as benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH), this condition is not cancer; neither does it increase the patient’s chances of developing cancer. While the prostate increases in size as a male grows, it is imperative to note that an older man will have a bigger prostate than that of a younger man. This condition is dangerous for when it comes to urination and the fact that in treating the condition, the man is susceptible to developing problems in their sexual ability. The effects due to this condition are dependent on age, genetics, and the level of anxiety as displayed by the patient.

Causes

Multiple factors lead to the development of an enlarged prostate. First is an alteration in the balance of sex hormones. This happens as the man grows older. Thus

  • Aging: Chances of developing an enlarged prostate increases as the man grows older
  • Family history: In case your father had an enlarged prostate the there is a high probability of you also developing the condition
  • Diabetes and heart conditions: These conditions influence the formation of an enlarged prostate owing to the fact that they involve the beta-blockers, thereby increasing the chances of developing an enlarged prostate.
  • Lifestyle: Lifestyle conditions like obesity have the potential to increase the risk of an enlarged prostate. On the other hand, exercise lowers the risk.

Symptoms

There are certain symptoms associated with an enlarged prostate including:

  • A frequent need to urinate
  • The feeling that your bladder is not completely emptied after urination
  • A weak urine stream
  • Problems starting or stopping urination
  • Presence of blood in the urine
  • Erectile dysfunction
  • Reduced libido
  • Problems maintaining an erection

Treatment Options

Multiple approaches are used in treating an enlarged prostate. Men must have their prostates screened regularly particularly the ones over 40, 45, and 50 years because these ages are the prime time for an enlarged prostate. In treating, multiple options are applicable in efforts to reduce the acuteness of this condition.

Surgical options

This is in the event that medication fails to eliminate the symptoms. These surgical approaches include:

  • The transurethral resection of the prostate (TURP): This involves the cutting out of the prostate tissue.
  • There is also the transurethral incision (TUIP) of the prostate: Here, grooves are made or created on the prostate
  • The third is the transurethral microwave thermotherapy (TUMT): this involves the use of microwaves in destroying the excess prostate tissue.
  • The prostatic urethral lift: this involves the movement of the prostate tissue away from the urethra.

Research has revealed that changes in the victim’s lifestyle can influence and get rid of the symptoms that are associated with an enlarged prostate. These include the reduction of the consumption of alcohol, sweeteners, and soda.

Categories
Advanced Urology Prostate Diseases

Prostate Cancer – Treatment Options

Treatment options for prostate cancer

With changing lifestyle preferences, Prostate cancer has become one of the common problems reported in males. In case you have discomfort in your groin area, swelling, or pain while urinating, you might have Prostate cancer. It is advised to see a doctor as soon as possible. If you are diagnosed positive for prostate cancer, you will be guided for the various treatment options available for the condition.

While the doctor would guide you the best, it is important to have knowledge about the treatment options available to you. In this article, we have discussed all the possible treatments for prostate cancer. The doctor might recommend any one of these or advise a combination. The selection depends upon a range of factors including the stage of cancer, your health condition, medical history, and more.

Radiation therapy for prostate cancer

Radiation therapy uses photons to kill cancerous cells. The ionizing radiation is targeted on the cancerous cells for killing their DNAs. Once coming in contact with the radiation, the cancer cells die without multiplying or regenerating. The treatment is appropriate when prostate cancer is local. It is as effective as surgery and offers great results. You will have to connect with a radiation oncologist who will arrange your radiotherapy sessions. There are two types of radiotherapy:

  • External Beam Radiation Therapy (EBRT): EBRT is commonly used radiotherapy to treat prostate cancer. The radiologist, with the help of mapping, identifies the location of the cancer cells and target them specifically.
  • Brachytherapy: In this therapy, the experts implant radiation seeds inside the prostate. These seeds emit radiation internally, killing the cancerous cells.

Surgery for prostate cancer

In case, cancer has not spread, doctors suggest removing the prostate gland through surgery. The procedure is called radical prostatectomy. However, in case, cancer has spread and formed a more advanced stage, the doctors work on the removal of the lymph nodes.

Open radical prostatectomy is the conventional way of operating the prostate gland and removing it. However, nowadays laparoscopic prostatectomy has become more popular. Irrespective of the type, a prostatectomy is a critical procedure, followed by a tough healing process. Surgery is often combined with other treatments such as Hormone therapy and Radiation therapy. The doctors might also recommend chemotherapy once the surgical wound is completely healed.

Hormone therapy for prostate cancer

It is believed that testosterone is one of the fuelling elements for the development of prostate cancer. Through Hormone therapy for prostate cancer, the doctors focus on minimizing the levels of testosterone in the body. The treatment is also known as androgen deprivation therapy or ADT and is used in a case where metastasis has happened. The therapy works on stopping the production of Testosterone or limits its contact with the prostate.

Chemotherapy for prostate cancer

The primary goal of chemotherapy is to restrict cancer from spreading to other sites. It is a critical procedure with lots of side effects. The oncologists administer medicine to your veins which acts on the cancerous cells. However, the high effects of the medicine can easily be observed by healthy cells as well. The result is a complete body imbalance. The side-effects range from nausea to vomiting, constipation to loose motions, headaches to fatigue, and a lot more. Its prime focus is to improve the quality of life and increase life span.

Immunotherapy for prostate cancer

Cancerous cells are harmful to the body and our immune system is designed to work against them.  However, when a patient has a progressive prostate cancer condition, the immune system can become weak. Immunotherapy works on the immune system of the body and retrains immune cells to respond to the malicious cells.

Some of the common types of immunotherapies include

These are some of the key treatments available for Prostate Cancer. An experienced prostate cancer expert can help you identify the best treatment for your condition and fight with prostate cancer effectively.

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