For too long the benefits of green tea and its components have been subject of scrutiny by investigators in the medical fraternity.

Many studies have indicated that green tea and its components are helpful in providing treatment for various ailments including prostate cancer and benign prostatic hypertrophy (BPH).

The phytochemicals, chemicals that are biologically active but not nutritive antioxidants in green tea work on growth factors and proteins and act as prostate medicine to restrict the growth of benign and malignant tumors as well. Read the rest of this entry “

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Signs and Symptoms Enlarged Prostate (BPH Symptoms)

December 5th, 2009

The enlarged prostate symptoms and signs can be divided into obstructive and irritative complaints. Obstructive symptoms include hesitancy, decreased force and caliber of stream, sensation of incomplete bladder emptying, double voiding (urinating a second time within 2 h of the previous void), straining to urinate, and post-void dribbling. Irritative enlarged prostate symptoms include urgency, frequency, and nocturia.

Here are some of the bph symptoms. Depending on your age, having some of these symptoms does not mean you need treatment. Most of the following enlarged prostate gland symptoms may also be present in prostate cancer patients.

Signs and symptoms enlarged prostate:

• Diuria
  The need to urinate frequently during the day Normally you shouldn’t have to go more than once every two-three hours during the day unless you drink a lot of liquids such as coffee, tea or beer. But in the cases of prostate enlargement, the prostate gland will press on the bladder and thus diminish it’s capacity, which in turn triggers the need to urinate.
• Nocturia
  Getting up two or more times at night
  Getting up during the night with urging to urinate is not uncommon for most men and a lot of women, especially if they have had a lot to drink in the evening before bed time. But a man who have an enlarged prostate gland symptoms may have to get up several times during the night. Sometimes he only voids a small amount. This provokes general fatigue and thus diminishes the quality of life of the invidual. This is also due to the fact that the swollen prostate is so large that it presses on the bladder.
• Urgency- You have to go to the toilet NOW
  This symptom makes one feel like he can’t wait a second longer, he has to void the bladder.
• Hesitancy or Difficulty in starting the flow of urine
  This is not always a sign of BPH or a prostate enlargement symptom. Many man have trouble urinating in public toilets, or if there are “curious” people around.
• Straining
  You want to urinate but it just won’t come. The urethra is so pressed by the enlarged prostate gland that you may have to strain to force urine through the constricted urethra. Constant straining can have other consequences: it may cause the bladder muscles to simply give up and not work at all. Or this could just cause thickened bladder muscles. Exception: if you wake up in the morning with an erection, and an urge to urinate, this is what is called “a pee hard on”. Straining is almost always necessary to get it started. This is because the bladder sphincter, or valve, is supposed to remain closed in the presence of an erection, so as to prevent any ejaculate that might occur from entering the bladder. After a transurethral resection prostatectomy (TURP) this valve is usually damaged. In this case, quite often when an ejaculation occurs, the semen takes the shorter route into the bladder. This is called retrograde emission.
• Dribbling and difficulty in stopping
  After urination the flow will seem to stop but it may continue to dribble. This is quite embarassing if a meeting follows.
• Decreased strength and force of the stream
• Decreased size or caliber of the stream
  This would be due to the constriction of the prostatic urethra.
• Feeling as though you still have to go
  Even after voiding, you may feel like you still have to go
• Dysuria-Pain or burning during urination
  Any pain or burning sensation could be due to irritation of the urethra. If the patient is unable to completely empty the bladder, it may lead to bacterial infection which may cause pain and burning during urination. Pain and burning could also indicate that you have an inflammation, prostatitis, bladder stones or prostatic stones.
• Dizziness, nausea, unusual sleepiness
  These symptoms may occur if there has been kidney damage due to the urine blockage.

Now that you know the enlarged prostate syomptoms, you should also be warned that it doesn’t necessarily mean that is what you have. It could be any of the following disorders:

• Prostatitis
• Prostate cancer
• Urethral strictures
• may be on some sort of medication that is interfering with the muscle fibers in the prostate and with the bladder function

Further investigations will be needed to set the precise diagnosis as being bph/enlarged prostate or other disorder.

The enlarged prostate symptoms and signs can be divided into obstructive and irritative complaints. Obstructive symptoms include hesitancy, decreased force and caliber of stream, sensation of incomplete bladder emptying, double voiding (urinating a second time within 2 h of the previous void), straining to urinate, and post-void dribbling. Irritative enlarged prostate symptoms include urgency, frequency, and nocturia.

Here are some of the bph symptoms. Depending on your age, having some of these symptoms does not mean you need treatment. Most of the following enlarged prostate gland symptoms may also be present in prostate cancer patients.

Signs and symptoms enlarged prostate:

• Diuria
  The need to urinate frequently during the day Normally you shouldn’t have to go more than once every two-three hours during the day unless you drink a lot of liquids such as coffee, tea or beer. But in the cases of prostate enlargement, the prostate gland will press on the bladder and thus diminish it’s capacity, which in turn triggers the need to urinate.
• Nocturia
  Getting up two or more times at night
  Getting up during the night with urging to urinate is not uncommon for most men and a lot of women, especially if they have had a lot to drink in the evening before bed time. But a man who have an enlarged prostate gland symptoms may have to get up several times during the night. Sometimes he only voids a small amount. This provokes general fatigue and thus diminishes the quality of life of the invidual. This is also due to the fact that the swollen prostate is so large that it presses on the bladder.
• Urgency- You have to go to the toilet NOW
  This symptom makes one feel like he can’t wait a second longer, he has to void the bladder.
• Hesitancy or Difficulty in starting the flow of urine
  This is not always a sign of BPH or a prostate enlargement symptom. Many man have trouble urinating in public toilets, or if there are “curious” people around.
• Straining
  You want to urinate but it just won’t come. The urethra is so pressed by the enlarged prostate gland that you may have to strain to force urine through the constricted urethra. Constant straining can have other consequences: it may cause the bladder muscles to simply give up and not work at all. Or this could just cause thickened bladder muscles. Exception: if you wake up in the morning with an erection, and an urge to urinate, this is what is called “a pee hard on”. Straining is almost always necessary to get it started. This is because the bladder sphincter, or valve, is supposed to remain closed in the presence of an erection, so as to prevent any ejaculate that might occur from entering the bladder. After a transurethral resection prostatectomy (TURP) this valve is usually damaged. In this case, quite often when an ejaculation occurs, the semen takes the shorter route into the bladder. This is called retrograde emission.
• Dribbling and difficulty in stopping
  After urination the flow will seem to stop but it may continue to dribble. This is quite embarassing if a meeting follows.
• Decreased strength and force of the stream
• Decreased size or caliber of the stream
  This would be due to the constriction of the prostatic urethra.
• Feeling as though you still have to go
  Even after voiding, you may feel like you still have to go
• Dysuria-Pain or burning during urination
  Any pain or burning sensation could be due to irritation of the urethra. If the patient is unable to completely empty the bladder, it may lead to bacterial infection which may cause pain and burning during urination. Pain and burning could also indicate that you have an inflammation, prostatitis, bladder stones or prostatic stones.
• Dizziness, nausea, unusual sleepiness
  These symptoms may occur if there has been kidney damage due to the urine blockage.

Now that you know the enlarged prostate syomptoms, you should also be warned that it doesn’t necessarily mean that is what you have. It could be any of the following disorders:

• Prostatitis
• Prostate cancer
• Urethral strictures
• may be on some sort of medication that is interfering with the muscle fibers in the prostate and with the bladder function

Further investigations will be needed to set the precise diagnosis as being bph/enlarged prostate or other disorder.

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Treatment after Prostate Cancer: Prostatectomy & PSA

December 5th, 2009

If a man has had surgery to remove the prostate (prostatectomy) PSA should be undetectable. If the man has had radiation or cryosurgery treatment, he will probably still have some viable prostate tissue left. So it may be normal for these men to have PSA in the blood. But the amount of PSA should be fairly low and the amount should be stable from test to test.

If a man has a high PSA reading after radiation or cryosurgery, and it remains high or increases in subsequent tests, then we know that all of the cancer was not killed, or that it had metastasized before treatment. This is a case of Prostate Cancer Recurrence (PSA numbers <>0 indicate this).

Ultra-sensitive PSA Test

Undetectable PSA after prostatectomy is perfect, this is after all the main goal of this radical intervention: no prostate=no PSA. However, if post treatment PSA levels are still there, then we know that the cancer had metastasized, and this is a sign prostate cancer is spreading after treatment. Metastatic cells are the same initial prostate cancer cells, no matter whether they have set up a colony in the lymph nodes or vertebra or lungs or wherever, and this calls for treatment after prostate cancer . So they will continue to pour PSA into the blood stream. Also, if a PSA blood tests shows that the PSA levels are rising after a prostatectomy , then we know that there are cancer cells still in the body somewhere.

The normal PSA test is not very sensitive, and it can detect only down to about 0.2 ng/ml. This is a good accuracy for pre-treatment PSA tests, for these levels can be influenced by many causes. But after treatment/intervention, especially after radical prostatectomy, there should be no PSA in the blood stream.

Dr. Stamey et al at Stanford University devised an ultra-sensitive test that may be ten times more sensitive than the normal Hybritech test. This test can show if the PSA is rising long before it becomes high enough to be detected by the normal PSA test (several months before). If the ultra-sensitive PSA test shows PSA activity, then new treatments options can be considered.

Following is a post from the internet by Charles Clausen about the ultrasensitive PSA tests:

There are two principal manufacturers of “superduper-ultrasensitive” assays, both of which use a chemiluminescent technique:

• Coming/Nichols, 33608 Ortega Hwy., San Juan Capistrano, CA 92690 1-800-642-4657
• Diagnostic Products, 5700 West 96th Street, Los Angeles, CA 90045 1-800-372-1782

The Nichols assay reports values down to 0.02, but can read values as low as 0.007. The Diagnostic Products Immulite assay reports values down to 0.04, but the “Immulite 3rd Generation” assay, which is expected to receive FDA approval, can readvalues down to O.003, and would, I presume, report values equal to or lower than the Nichols assay.

An interesting paper about the Nichols assay by Dr. Stamey of Stanford and the staff of the Nichols Institute can be obtained by phoning the Nichols number above. In this paper, it is stated that the Nichols assay values correlate very closely to those of the Hybritech and Yang assays. They say that their assay should be useful for detecting recurring PCa in post-prostatectomy patients because it allows more lead time in detecting a rising PSA. For this purpose, Dr. Stamey recommends testing every three months, until a PSA >0.07 is detected, then testing should be monthly, “to establish a log linear rise to levels >0.1 ng/mL”.

If a “progressive exponential increase” is detected, you know the PCa is back, but if the >0.07 proves to be a one time elevation, it is o.k. to resume testing every three months. The paper states, “serial measurements of serum PSA using an ultrasensitive essay can accelerate detection of recurrence in prostatectomized patients by many months.”

From what I have been able to gather, both of these assays are available at the same cost as conventional assays.

Charles Clausen, SW Oregon cclausen@magick.net

at age 56, 1/94 Dx: PSA 9.9, Gleason 3+4; 3/94 Tx: RP at UCSF, Dx: pT3aNl; thru 7/94 PSA <0.1, 10/94 PSA 0.1 (Abbott IMX); 1/95 to 12/95 Tx: CHT, 2/95 thru 3/96 PSA undetectable (IMX); 6/96 PSA 0.02, 9/96 PSA 0.09 (Immulite 3rd generation) >

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Other prostate diseases statistics

December 5th, 2009

Here are some more statistics related to prostate diseases:

Each year, an average of 40,000 American man have their prostate removed, convinced that this is the only hope they have. But is this really true? Statistics show that earlier than five years, 35% will be dealt with again.

The standard treatment choices -surgery, radiation, and hormonal therapy are of limited effectiveness and have major side effects such as incontinence and impotence, which occur in about 80% of cases, although doctors claim the number is closer to 20%.

This site is intended to throw an informative and helping hand to all those seeking to regain their total health; not just the prostate health.

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PSA Test Result Interpretation (PSA Levels reading)

December 5th, 2009

There are a few things to consider before getting your PSA test results interpretation. Here are the most important things to know:

False Positive and False Negative PSA

PSA is indeed a great biomarker for any kind of cancer, but it is not perfect. There are other reasons why prostate PSA test results may be high and in these cases it gives a false indication of cancer; just as there are causes that may hide the PSA and make it appear to be normal even though cancer might be present.

Now it is known that older men with a PSA as high as 5 or 6 most probably don’t have cancer. BPH may also cause a higher PSA. The PSA score for BPH can go up, because of the increased number of cells producing PSA, which can reach levels as high as 10 to 15 ng/ml or more. Read the rest of this entry “

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PSA Test (PSA Levels): Prostate specific antigen

December 5th, 2009

When a man complains of prostate health symptoms, the first procedure that should be done is a DRE (Digital Rectal Exam). And only if the DRE indicates possible presence of BPH/Prostate Cancer will a PSA test be done.

After you have filled out the many forms and paperwork, a blood sample will be drawn for a prostate specific antigen (PSA) test. The doctor may also ask that a prostate acid phosphatase (PAP) test be done from the same blood draw. Some doctors prefer to draw the blood first, since rough palpations of the prostate gland can cause an increase in PSA levels.

DRE suspicious and PSA test levels above normal, the next procedure may be a biopsy of the prostate. If the results still don’t provide with a clear image of the case, several other tests may be ordered: a bone scan (in case prostate cancer has metastasized), a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) test, a computerized tomography (CT) scan, a transrectal ultrasound test (TRUS), a ploidy test, a laparoscopic test of lymph nodes, a prostascint test, reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) test and several others.

With enough information at hand, the doctor can assign a clinical stage. The stage will most likely influence the treatment decision.

PSA Test

With the increased awareness in prostate cancer, there are newer methods to detect it and one of them is Prostate Specific Antigen test. PSA is a protein enzyme that is normally produced by prostate cells. The presence of PSA in the blood stream is normal, and it can be found in high concentrations in the semen.

It’s main purpose is to help liquefy the semen after it has been ejaculated. This liquefaction makes it easier for the sperm to swim in their search for an ovum.

PSA was first used in 1979 to try to identify rapists. Besides being found in the semen, small amounts of PSA is also found in the blood stream. In the mid 1980s it was found that prostate cancer cells also manufacture PSA. Most cancer cells do nothing at all except multiply and expand. The PSA manufactured by these cells is later released into the blood stream and can be measured, considering that the amount of PSA in the blood correlates very closely with the amount of prostate cancer.

The PSA test levels can be used to monitor the progress of the cancer. PSA amount going up indicates that the cancer is actively spreading and growing. However, remember that in cancer there are many exceptions: some prostate cancers become so poorly differentiated that they no longer make PSA. And as a consequence, some men can have metastatic cancer with a very low PSA. But as a general rule, when PSA doubles, then we can be fairly certain that the number of cancer cells have doubled .

This can be a matter of months of weeks. The faster the PSA doubling time, the faster the cancer is growing, so it is very important to have a PSA test done in order to later use it as a starting point.

Significance of PSA test level

Initially, when first discovered, no one knew what “normal” PSA levels were and what high PSA test results were.After statistical evaluations on thousands of men, it was established that the normal PSA should be between 0-4 nanograms per milliliter (ng/ml) of blood . (a nanogram is a billionth of a gram).

What exceptions are there:

• all of us are different. What is normal for one man may not be for another. Some men have had significant cancer with a very low PSA. Conversely, a man may have a PSA as high as 12 ng/ml or more simply because of BPH or a prostatic infection.

• Studies have shown that PSA can be age specific and the 4 ng/ml is not necessarily a good cutoff point for every one. 4 ng/ml may be considered normal for some younger patients, but many significant cancers may be overlooked in older cases. In older men if 4 ng/ml is considered to indicate cancer, then many of them may undergo unnecessary biopsies or even have an unnecessary radical prostatectomy.

  Dr. Joseph E. Oesterling, Editor-in-Chief of Urology, and several other doctors have recommended the following for the age specific PSA test levels cutoff:

  -ages 40-49 = 2.5 ng/ml,

  -ages 50-59 = 3.5 ng/ml,

  -ages 60-70 = 4.5 ng/ml,

  -ages 70-75 = 6.5 ng/ml.

Any PSA greater than that listed for the age should be considered suspicious.

Black people are at a much higher risk for prostate cancer and it is usually more aggressive when detected. Studies show that the age specific PSA levels should be much lower for blacks. But again and again, there are no absolute rules in cancer so these figures are only guidelines.

PSA vs. DRE

Each one has it’s place in the prostate cancer detection process. Drs. Brawer and Lange (The Journal of Urology, September 1993, page 896) investigated a series of 1,249 cancer patients. The prostate cancer was not detected by DRE in 37.5% (468 men) but was detected by the PSA levels.

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Masturbation May Increase Risk of Prostate Cancer

December 5th, 2009

The study’s lead author Polyxeni Dimitropoulou

A new study finds men who are sexually active in their 20s and 30s are more likely to develop prostate cancer — especially if they masturbate frequently.

The study also found that frequent sexual activity in a man’s 40s appears to have little effect and even small levels of sexual activity in a man’s 50s could offer protection from the disease. Most of the differences were attributed to masturbation rather than sexual intercourse. Read the rest of this entry “

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Prostate Biopsy Risks & Side-effects- Are there any?

December 5th, 2009

Sometimes people ask about prostate biopsy side effects, or about prostate biopsy risks . The greatest risk is not getting accurate prostate samples, that is not making correct conclusions as a result of the biopsy. If there IS indeed a cancer and it’s stage is high, not detecting it could be very dangerous, because it could methastasize in the mean time. It’s is well known that in the case of prostate cancer, “the sooner, the better”. However, evaluating PSA levels frequently can prevent an explosion of this affection. Read the rest of this entry “

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Prostate Biopsy Evaluation & Results

December 5th, 2009

The pathologist is the physician who receives the tissue specimens (blood, biopsies, prostates) from your urologist or surgeon . He works in the lab, and will now analyze and diagnose the received specimens. Nobody really emphasizes the importance of the pathologist, and the lab seems like a black box most of the time: the samples go in and the diagnostic comes out. The inner workings are a mistery for most people.

In his book “A Revolutionary Approach to Prostate Cancer”, Aubrey Pilgrim mentions the following:

“Although the patient’s prostate biopsy should be diagnosed by a pathologist who is proficient in interpreting this type of specimen, the patient (and increasingly the urologist) rarely has the opportunity to choose his pathologist. While the urologist may know of a pathologist with special competence in evaluating prostate samples, the insurance company has in most cases already contracted with a specific commercial laboratory to handle the specimen, effectively removing the urologist’s professional opinion from this decision. Nevertheless most general pathologists are well­trained and are competent to read the great majority of prostate needle­biopsy and prostatectomy specimens. If general pathologists see enough prostate specimens to gain familiarity with the subtle variations of normal tissue and the various forms of malignancy, and if they develop a healthy respect for the hard­to­diagnose cases (i.e., those which need to be seen by more experienced eyes), they can provide a valuable service.”

Tissues are graded according to their ability to retain their normal appearance. The more disrupted the normal glandular architecture, the higher the grade of tumor and the poorer the prognosis. But remember: the only way one can be sure of the result of the biopsy is if a radical prostatectomy is performed for cure. Otherwise, if the cancer is missed and you have a negative biopsy, then it could cause a real problem.

A Pathology report will be the result of the pathological exam and you should try your best to grab a copy, thus becoming better informed and able to make the right choices.

Here is what the structure of such a report:
• Your name and associated personal identifiers (age, patient number, etc.)
• The accession number of the case (Usually in the form of “S­year­ number”, e.g., S­96­16258)
• A gross description of the specimen (including the number and size of the tissue cores) received by the laboratory.
• The diagnosis, which reduced to its most basic form is either benign (normal), atypical/suspicious, or malignant (cancer).
• The name and signature of the responsible pathologist along with the name and address of the lab.

All this being said, i wish you a Happy NED (No Evidence of Disease) as a result of your Prostate Biopsy.

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Who is prostate biopsy for? Prerequisites…

December 5th, 2009

After PSA testing and DRE (Digital Rectal Exam), a prostate biopsy may be required by your doctor, in order to make a correct and as precise as possible diagnostic.

So we may conclude that a biopsy of the prostate is necessary if either the PSA or DRE result is abnormal.

Why is prostate biopsy done?

It is performed for two reasons:

1. in order to find the true cause behind the elevated PSA levels.
2. because, as we stated before, the best thing a doctor has when diagnosing his patient, or in the process of staging a cancer, is a portion of living tissue. Read the rest of this entry “

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