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prostate
cancer
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prostate
cancer
The prostate is a glandular organ present only in males. Only men
develop prostate cancer.
The prostate is normally about 3 cm long (slightly more than 1
inch) and lies at the neck of the bladder and in front of the rectum.
- The prostate surrounds the urethra, which is a tubular
structure that carries sperm and urine out of the penis.
- The prostate produces a thin, milky fluid that is added to the
sperm at the time of ejaculation.
- Older men often have an
enlarged prostate, which is a noncancerous condition called
benign prostatic hypertrophy (BPH) that causes urinary symptoms.
Cancer occurs when normal cells undergo a transformation in which
they grow and multiply without normal controls.
- As the cells multiply, they form a mass called a tumor.
- Tumors are cancerous only if they are malignant. This means
that they invade neighboring tissues because of their uncontrolled
growth.
- They may also travel to remote organs via the bloodstream.
- This process of invading and spreading to other organs is
called metastasis.
- Tumors overwhelm surrounding tissues by invading their space
and taking the oxygen and nutrients they need to survive and
function.
Almost all prostate cancers arise from the secretory glandular
cells in the prostate. Cancer arising from a glandular cell is known
as adenocarcinoma. Therefore, almost all prostatic cancers are
prostatic adenocarcinomas.
In the United States, cancer of the prostate is a common malignant
cancer in men, second only to lung cancer. According to American
cancer society's most recent estimates, 192,280 new cases of prostate
cancer would be diagnosed in 2009 and 27,360 would die from the
disease.
The estimated lifetime risk of being diagnosed with the disease is
17.6% for whites and 20.6% for African Americans. The lifetime risk of
death from prostate cancer similarly is 2.8% and 4.7% respectively.
Because of these numbers, prostate cancer is likely to impact the
lives of a significant proportion of men that are alive today.
Over the years, however, the death rate from this disease has shown
a steady decline, and currently more than 2 million men in the U.S.
are still alive after being diagnosed with prostate cancer at some
point in their lives.
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