Symptoms and Causes

Prostate Cancer

Prostate cancer does not usually produce symptoms. Most of the time it is diagnosed before it has any effect. The manifestations that a man with a prostate tumor usually presents are secondary to benign prostatic hyperplasia, which usually coexists with it:

• Dysuria (painful urination)

• Increased frequency of urination

• Loose jet

• Feeling of incomplete evacuation

• Shortness of urination

• Urgency or urgency to urinate

• Hematuria

• Hemospermia

In some cases, prostate cancer may debut in advanced stages. On these occasions, the tumor may cause local symptoms such as:

• Bleeding in the urine.
• Great voiding difficulty.
• Perineal pain.
• In some cases, it may invade the rectum and cause constipation or alterations in the stool habit.
• If the tumor affects the bladder, urinary urgency, frequency of urination and urinary discomfort may increase.
• If the tumor reaches the bladder trigone, obstruction of the ureter may occur and, consequently, lumbar pain, colic, ureteral dilatation or even annulment of that kidney.
• If there is bone involvement, bone pain and even pathological fractures may occur, although this situation is unusual.

Causes of Prostate Cancer

The causes of prostate cancer are not known but the main risk factor for developing it is age. There are some associations between racial factors (more common in blacks) with increased diagnosis of prostate cancer. In addition, there seems to be a clear association between some mutations, such as carriers of the BRCA1 and BRCA2 genes, and the possibility of developing prostate cancer.

On the other hand, there seem to be dietary factors, such as obesity, diabetes, alcohol consumption, excessive consumption of red meat and diets with a high percentage of fatty, fried, dairy and processed foods.

Tomato, lycopenes and soy appear to be protective. The relationship between some micronutrients (Selenium and Vitamin E) with prostate tumor development is debatable.

Appointment for prostate cancer treatment