Prostate Cancer Types, Symptoms & Treatment

The cancer that develops in the prostate is known as prostate cancer. Prostate is a small walnut-shaped gland found in males that is responsible for producing the seminal fluid which helps in nourishing and transporting the sperm.

While many of the prostate cancers develop slowly and are limited to the prostate gland without causing any serious trouble, some prostate cancers may spread quickly to other parts of the body, which can be fatal. Prostate cancers may be treated successfully if detected early and are limited to the prostate gland.

Yashoda Superspeciality Hospital & Cancer Institute, Sanjay Nagar, Ghaziabad, has a special Uro-Oncology Unit that deals specially with urologic cancers including prostate, bladder, and testicular cancers. Our oncologists have years of experience and you will receive all the care and facilities you require. We are here to provide you with all the important information related to prostate cancer, its types, risk factors, signs and symptoms, diagnostic procedures as well as its stages and treatment.

Types of prostate cancer

Most of the prostate cancers are categorized into one type only, known as Adenocarcinomas in which the cancer occurs from the cells of the prostate gland. These cells are responsible for making the prostate fluid that is found in the semen.

Other types of prostate cancers that are rare and may originate in the prostate include-

• Small cell carcinomas
• Neuroendocrine tumors (excluding the small cell carcinomas)
• Transitional cell carcinomas
• Sarcomas

Risk factors of prostate cancer

Some of the factors that may increase the risk of having prostate cancer are:

• It is generally found to occur in men who are above the age of 50. In other words, the risk of prostate cancer increases with age.
• Any family history of prostate cancer further aggravates the risk. People with a family history of genes responsible for breast cancer (BRCA1 or BRCA2 genes are risk factors of breast and ovarian cancers) or a family history of breast cancer are at a greater risk of having prostate cancer.
• Obesity may also be one of the risk factors. In obese people, the cancer has a chance to return even after initial treatment and is generally aggressive.
• A condition that is caused by inherited gene changes known as hereditary non polyposis colorectal cancer (HNPCC) or Lynch Syndrome may also be one of the risk factors of other cancers including prostate cancer in men.

Signs & symptoms of prostate cancer

Prostate Cancer in early stages may show no signs and symptoms. These generally develop when prostate cancer has reached its advanced stages. Some of the signs and symptoms are as follows:

• Presence of blood in urine and semen
• Difficulty in urinating
• Decrease in force in the stream of urine
• Pain in bones such as spine or back, ribs or chest and hips
• Erectile dysfunction
• Losing weight without any reason

The specialists for prostate cancer at Yashoda Superspeciality Hospital & Cancer Institute, Sanjay Nagar, Ghaziabad, will always advise you to consult a doctor if you find any of these signs and symptoms. If you are looking for specialists in uro-oncology in the region of Delhi NCR, we will provide you with the best care and support, offering all facilities you may require. Our oncologists are well experienced and will help you at every step of diagnosis and treatment.

Stages of prostate cancer

The stages of prostate cancer are determined by the use of Gleason score through which the cancer is graded and the PSA level is determined. The stages of prostate cancer are as follows:

Stage I- In this stage, the cancer is limited to prostate gland with PSA level less than 10 and Grade Group-1.

Stage II- In this stage, the cancer is more advanced but is limited to prostate gland. This stage is further divided into sub-stages IIA, IIB, IIC.

In Stage IIA, the cancer is limited to one-half or less of one side of the prostate with PSA level not less than 10 but lower than 20 and Grade Group-1.

In Stage IIB, the cancer exists in more than one-half of one side of the prostate or even in both sides of the prostate with PSA level less than 20 and Grade Group-2.

In Stage IIC, the cancer exists in one or both sides of the prostate while the PSA level is less than 20 and Grade Group is 3 or 4.

Stage III- This stage is divided into three sub-categories- IIIA, IIIB, IIIC.

In Stage IIIA, one or both sides of the prostate has cancer with PSA level not less than 20 and Grade Group may vary from 1 to 4.

In Stage IIIB, cancer has travelled from the prostate to the seminal vesicles or to other closer parts of the body such as the pelvic wall while PSA may be of any level and Grade Group may vary from 1 to 4.

In Stage IIIC, cancer may exist in one or both sides of the prostate and may even have travelled to the seminal vesicles or other closer parts such as the bladder or pelvic wall. The PSA may be of any level while the Grade Group is 5.

Stage IV- This stage is divided into two sub-categories- IVA and IVB.

In Stage IVA, cancer may have travelled from the prostate to the seminal vesicles or other parts such as the rectum or pelvic wall and even to nearby lymph nodes. The PSA may be of any level while the Grade Group may vary from 1 to 5.

In Stage IVB, cancer has travelled to other areas of the body such as the distant lymph nodes.

How is prostate cancer treated?

Specialists at Yashoda Superspeciality Hospital & Cancer Institute, Sanjay Nagar, Ghaziabad, design the best treatment you require after analyzing the stage of your cancer, the extent of its spread, and your medical history. They will also assist you at every stage of the treatment, explaining the possible side effects of the treatment. Prostate cancer may be treated in a number of ways:

Surgery- Surgery is used for early stages of prostate cancer. It may be used along with other treatments while treating advanced prostate cancer. Surgical oncologists may remove the prostate gland which is known as radical prostatectomy and may also remove surrounding tissues and few lymph nodes if required.

Radiation Therapy– In Radiation therapy, high doses of energy beams are targeted at the site of the cancer to destroy cancer cells. This may be done from outside the body through advanced machines known as External Beam Radiation or may also be done by placing the radiation inside your body through a source known as Brachytherapy. This therapy may be also used after surgery to destroy the left-out cancer cells that may have survived even after surgery. This therapy helps in slowing down the growth of cancer and relieving the symptoms.

Freezing or heating prostate tissue- Cryoablation or cryotherapy is done by using an excessive cold gas to freeze the prostate tissue. This is followed by allowing the tissue to defrost and again the process of freezing is done. This entire process is repeated which helps in destroying the cancer cells. Doctors may also use High-Intensity Focused Ultrasound (HIFU) treatment in which concentrated ultrasound energy is used to heat the prostate tissue so that it gets destroyed.

Hormone Therapy- The male hormone, testosterone, helps the prostate cancer cells to grow. This therapy is done to obstruct your body from producing testosterone. This therapy may be done with the help of medicines such as Luteinizing Hormone-Releasing Hormone (LHRH) or Gonadotropin-Releasing Hormone (GnRH) or may also be done through surgery known as Orchiectomy in which surgical oncologists remove your testicles. This therapy helps in treating the advanced prostate cancer and slowing down its growth.

Chemotherapy– This therapy uses drugs to destroy cancer cells. These drugs may be given into your body via veins in your arm or through pill form or both. This therapy may be helpful in treating prostate cancer that has travelled to other parts of the body.

Immunotherapy- This therapy helps your immune system in fighting cancer by using drugs that help your immune system to identify cancer cells and destroy them. This therapy may be helpful for those cancer cells that could not be destroyed through hormone therapy.

Targeted Drug Therapy- This therapy may be used to treat advanced stages of prostate cancer. In this therapy, drugs are used to target specific abnormalities that are present within the cancer cells causing them to die.

Diagnostic procedures for prostate cancer

At Yashoda Superspeciality Hospital & Cancer Institute, Sanjay Nagar, Ghaziabad, you may avail the best surgical techniques The diagnostic procedures used are as follows:

• Digital Rectal Exam (DRE) – The doctor will examine your prostate gland that is adjacent to the rectum by inserting a gloved and lubricated finger into your rectum to find if there is any change in the texture, shape or size of the prostate gland. The doctor may then ask you to have further tests, if needed.
• Prostate-Specific Antigen Test (PSA) – PSA is a substance that the prostate gland naturally produces. The doctor will take a blood sample from a vein in your arm and investigate the quantity of PSA level in your blood. A higher level of PSA is indicative of infection, inflammation, enlargement or cancer in the prostate. A higher level of PSA also may be a sign of Benign Prostatic Hyperplasia (BPH) which is an enlarged but non cancerous prostate gland.

The doctor may even recommend you to have other tests such as ultrasound by inserting a small probe into your rectum, Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) scan for having a more detailed picture of the prostate gland and prostate biopsy in which the doctor may collect a sample of prostate tissue to see if there is any presence of cancer cells.

After the presence of prostate cancer is confirmed, the doctor will determine the level of aggressiveness of cancer cells. The procedure through which the grades of aggressiveness are determined is called Gleason score which is the most widely used scale to determine and grade the aggressiveness of prostate cancer. The grade is given by determining the extent of difference between the tumor tissue and prostate tissue. Each of the two main cell patterns, the primary pattern and the most common tissue pattern, are given a grade from 3-5. These numbers are then combined to find the grade of cancer. While assessing prostate biopsy, a scale of 6-10 is used. The higher the grade, the more aggressive the cancer. After the aggressiveness of prostate cancer is analyzed, the doctor may conduct other tests such as ultrasound, bone scan, Computerized Tomography (CT) scan and Positron Emission Tomography (PET) scan to determine the stage of prostate cancer and whether it has spread to other parts of the body.

Meet the Best Urologists in Delhi NCR at Yashoda Superspeciality Hospital & Cancer Institute, Sanjay Nagar, Ghaziabad

Dr. Pradeep Prakash is one of the best urologists with more than 13 years of experience. He is an alumnus of AIIMS, New Delhi who has been into the field of minimally invasive urology and urologic cancer surgery. He also has a two-year fellowship in Robotic Surgery and Uro-Oncology from AIIMS, New Delhi. He is a specialist in minimally invasive laparoscopic and robotic surgeries for the management of urologic cancers such as prostate, kidney and bladder cancers.

Consult these specialists and book an appointment now. Visit our official website www.yashodahealthcare.com