Life
Mens Health: The enlarged prostate
The symptoms of an enlarged prostate include slow-flowing urine, increased night-time urination, increased overall frequency of urination, straining to pass urine, a sensation of incomplete bladder emptying, and increased time for urination…
Facts About Prostate Cancer in Black Men:
1. Black men have significantly higher rates of prostate cancer.
2. Black men have lower rates of screening for prostate cancer.
3. Black men have, on average, more advanced and harder to cure prostate cancer at the time of diagnosis.
4. Black men have a higher chance of dying from their prostate cancer.
What Should Be Done About This?
Black men should:
1. Get screened for prostate cancer earlier than the standard guidelines suggest. This means most black men should start prostate cancer screening with yearly Prostate Specific Antigen (PSA) tests and physical exams at age 40 and even earlier if a strong family history of prostate cancer exists.
2. Be more aware of any symptoms that may signal that prostate cancer or another prostate condition such as Benign Prostatic Hyperplasia (BPH – enlarged prostate) have developed. Urinary symptoms are the most common early symptoms of prostate cancer.
3. Talk to male family members about their increased risk of prostate cancer.
Symptoms of an enlarged prostate
The symptoms of an enlarged prostate include slow-flowing urine, increased night-time urination, increased overall frequency of urination, straining to pass urine, a sensation of incomplete bladder emptying, and increased time for urination to start and stop.
There is an ongoing debate about whether size matters. Well, for the prostate it definitely does! This male reproductive organ grows throughout life.
It tends to add to the list of challenges that older people have to deal with which are associated with ageing. What can we do about it?
The purpose of the prostate is to produce and store a liquid that makes up 20-30 per cent of the semen. This liquid helps sperms to survive longer and move faster in the female genital so that they can complete the task that they have set out to accomplish. The prostate surrounds the outlet of the bladder so as it grows, it obstructs the outflow of urine form the bladder.
BPH is a very common problem in older men. In fact, about 50 per cent of men have it by age 60 and 90 per cent by 85. In 40-50 per cent of these men, the condition will cause symptoms. If the muscles around the channel that takes the urine out of the bladder (urethra) in the prostate are contracted, then symptoms are more likely.
Possibility of obstruction
There may be obstruction without an enlarged prostate and vice versa. The symptoms are usually more aggressive in black populations.
Some lifestyle changes that may help include reducing alcohol and caffeine intake as they increase the production of urine. Also, reduce the intake of fluids close to bedtime and seek to have regular planned time so urinate.
Nutritional and herbal supplements (e.g. saw palmetto) have not been proven reliable in treating this condition either in relieving the symptoms or slowing down its growth. There are medications available that can relax the muscles of the urethra in the prostate that give relatively fast relief of the symptoms. Some medications can shrink the prostate over time. Combining them has the better outcome.
Surgery (prostatectomy) may be used to remove the obstruction and heat may be used to selectively destroy some of the prostate, reducing the size. The heat may be supplied by laser, high-intensity ultrasound, microwaves, radiofrequency energy and high-voltage electrical energy.