The American Cancer Society’s 2017 estimates for prostate cancer  in the United States:

  • About 161,360 new cases of prostate cancer
  • About 26,730 deaths from prostate cancer
  • Risk of prostate cancer: About 1 man in 7 will be diagnosed with prostate cancer during his lifetime.
  • Prostate cancer develops mainly in older men. About 6 cases in 10 are diagnosed in men aged 65 or older, and it is rare before age 40. The average age at the time of diagnosis is about 66.

Deaths From Prostate Cancer
Prostate cancer is the second-leading cause of cancer death in American men after lung cancer. About 1 man in 39 will die of prostate cancer.

Prostate cancer can be a serious disease, but most men diagnosed with prostate cancer do not die from it. More than 2.9 million men in the United States who have been diagnosed with prostate cancer are still alive today.

Prostate Cancer Basics

Dr. Stuart Kesler, a urologist with the Tallwood Urology & Kidney Institute, talks about the symptoms and new treatments for prostate cancer.

Q. What are the signs and symptoms of prostate cancer?
A. The majority of the time, there are no signs or symptoms of prostate cancer. If symptoms do occur, they usually only occur late in the disease process. Such symptoms may include slowing urinary stream, blood in the urine, or bone pain. That is one of the primary reasons that screening for prostate cancer using a blood test, known as PSA, came into being.

Q. There is so much conflicting information regarding the PSA test, why is it so controversial and why is there such a varied opinion on this test?
A. That is a tremendously difficult question to answer in such a short period of time, however, it has a lot to do with the fact that the PSA test has limitations. If one’s PSA is elevated, it doesn’t automatically mean you have prostate cancer, but other diagnoses can cause an abnormal test result. Also, PSA testing has led to the over-diagnosis of low risk prostate cancers — which often may not require treatment. A number of genomic based tests have more recently come on the market – to not just diagnose prostate cancer, but to potentially differentiate between less aggressive and more aggressive types of prostate cancer.

Q. Recently, a landmark study in the New England Journal of Medicine was published comparing treatments for prostate cancer, can you comment on this article?
A. Absolutely, it’s a very important study. It was performed in Great Britain, with the goal of determining what treatment was best for the management of localized prostate cancer. Approximately 1,700 patients with prostate cancer were randomized to one of three treatments: Active Surveillance, Radiation, or Surgery. With an average follow up of 10 years, risk of death from prostate cancer was similar among the 3 treatment groups. However, They did find that higher rates of disease progression and metastasis occurred in the monitoring arm. This was an incredibly expensive and time consuming study to carry out, because they had to track patients for 10 years. Because prostate cancer is often slow growing they needed a long follow-up if the study was to have any meaning.

Event: A Guide For Cancer Patients

Being diagnosed with prostate cancer can be a confusing time. That’s why the Hartford HealthCare Cancer Institute offers a nurse navigator program – to help guide cancer patients and their families through what can be an unfamiliar healthcare system.

For more information on prostate cancer prevention and treatment, visit Hartford HealthCare Cancer Institute.