Road to the diagnosis: stories of patients with prostate cancer

Usually you can live long with prostate cancer.

Most cases are captured before cancer spreads. In fact, more than 75% of diagnoses are made while the disease is still confined to the prostate. When this happens, the prospects are excellent: the five -year survival rate is almost 100%.

But there is an important socket: these strong numbers of survival strongly depend on the regular blood tests of the specific antigen of the prostate (PSA). Prostate cancer which is captured later, after its spread, generally has much poorer results.

The American Urological Association and the American Cancer Society recommend that men begin to speak to their doctors of PSA screening at 50. These conversations should start even earlier, around 40 to 45 years, if you are part of a high -risk group, such as those with family history of the disease. If you and your doctor decide that PSA tests suit you, screening is generally carried out every two to four years. This is not recommended, however, for men over 70 or those whose life expectancy is less than 10 years.

Screening counts because prostate cancer generally does not cause notable symptoms when it started. Signs that you could consider as “red flags” – as a painful urination, difficulties to start or stop urination, or frequent night bathroom trips – are often linked to other conditions such as benign prostate hyperplasia (BPH) or prostatitis, not prostate cancer.

If you receive a diagnosis of prostate cancer, it is important to remember that you are not alone. One in eight adults in the United States is developing prostate cancer. Here, two men share their diagnostic trips with us.

As the adage says, “life comes quickly.” I never imagined that prostate cancer would be part of my story. At 37, I felt healthy, I focused on a new job and my family and I settled in life after moving to Austin. Cancer was not even on my radar. So when I went for a routine assessment, the last thing I expected was the news that hinted that something could be seriously bad. The adage is therefore correct: life can change in an instant.

I was only 47 when my symptoms started. I had to urinate SO Often, but my bladder has never felt completely empty. When I urinated, my stream would be weak. With a full bladder and a weak stream, I suffered from the pressure.

Even if men generally do not obtain urinary tract infections (UTI), I thought it was what it could be. After all, I didn’t really drink enough water, which is a risk factor for urinary tract infections. I drank some liquids, but my symptoms have persisted. I thought it was time to go to my primary care provider to be checked.

I spoke to the doctor about my symptoms and he made a urine analysis. My doctor said I had a urinary tract infection and gave me antibiotics to treat the infection.

I would go through a few other diagnostic and antibiotic cycles before I finally receive a diagnosis of prostate cancer from stage 4.