Tips On…Prostate Cancer

Prostate cancer often has no symptoms. When there are symptoms, they can be similar to the symptoms of noncancerous growth of the prostate (benign prostatic hypertrophy, or BPH, which can occur as men age). The symptoms of a tumor in the prostate are also often the same as the symptoms of an infection of the prostate or other blockage. Possible symptoms are:

• The need to urinate frequently and with urgency
• Difficulty beginning a stream of urine
• Decreased force in the stream of urine
• Increased need to urinate at night
• Inability to urinate
• Bone pain or back pain if the cancer has spread.

Have regular checkups with your doctor. Rectal exams of the prostate can be embarrassing and slightly uncomfortable, but it is important for men to have one every year. The yearly rectal exam also screens for cancers of the colon and rectum.