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Author:
Fritz Frei-Fang

1 Testosterone and its active metabolite.

Dihydro-testosterone are essential for prostate cancer to develop, but does not actually cause prostate cancer. Men who are castrated at a young age do not develop prostate cancer.

2 Prevalence of prostate cancer

One in ten men will develop clinically significant prostate cancer in their lifetime. It is the most commonly diagnosed cancer in American males with 250 000 new cases reported annually. Prostate cancer is second only to lung cancer as a cause of cancer death in both the USA and the UK. Prostate cancer is rare among Orientals. It is more common in black than white Americans. The disease appears to present at a younger age and behave more aggressively in American blacks. Prostate cancer is common in South Africa and probably underreported as a cause of death. The exact incidence in South Africa is not known as no large-scale epidemiological studies have been performed. It is uncertain whether prostate cancer is more common in South African blacks as compared to whites. In very old men prostate cancer is not always clinically significant. Autopsy data indicate a 70% incidence of prostate cancer in 80 year old men. The majority of these men died with rather than from prostate cancer.

3 Causes of prostate cancer

There is no single cause of prostate cancer. The cancer originates in the epithelial cells of the glandular elements of the prostate. As with most cancers defects in the DNA of the cell are central to the development of prostate cancer. Multiple DNA defects are required for cancer to develop. This multi-step process takes place over time. Some defects can be inherited, while others are acquired during the patient's lifetime. Prostate cancer is exceedingly rare before the age of 40, but 1 in 8 men between the ages of 60 and 80 years suffer from the disease. 9% of all prostate cancers are caused by a genetic susceptibility, probably inherited via chromosome 1. These genetically related cancers tend to present at a relatively younger age.

4 What is prostatitis?

Prostatitis means “inflammation of the prostate”, and is one of the most common reasons men visiting the doctor in the western world. It is most common in men over the age of 30, and particularly in men over the age of 60. While prostatitis is treatable, diagnosis can be lengthy and not all treatments are successful. This is partly because the various causes of prostatitis are not fully understood. There are three main types of prostatitis:

· Acute prostatitis, which develops suddenly and may not be permanent.
· Non-bacterial prostatitis, which may develop suddenly or follow a slower or variable course. It is now more commonly called chronic male pelvic pain syndrome because it cannot be proved to be “non-bacterial”, though a bacterial cause cannot be identified.
· Chronic (bacterial) prostatitis, which develops gradually and may only have subtle symptoms, though it often continues for a prolonged period.
· asymptomatic inflammatory prostatitis - which has no symptoms at all but results in an inflamed prostate, is sometimes mentioned. It has been discovered when biopsies are conducted on the prostate to rule out cancer, and no cancer is found. This is a histological and not a clinical diagnosis. Prostatitis is often reported on the histological analysis of TURP specimens when the prostate resection was performed for symptoms of BPH. If the patient is asymptomatic this histological finding does not warrant any treatment.

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A Quick Note From The Publisher... If you like the article above, you may be interested in the following article which is also related to The Prostate... The Prostate Gland - What Is It And What Does It Do? The prostate gland forms part of the male reproductive system and is responsible for the production of a clear liquid which makes up about thirty percent of the seminal fluid used to carry and protect the male sperm during intercourse. The prostate gland sits just below the bladder and in front of the rectum, partially surrounding the urethra which carries urine from the bladder out of the body. During childhood the prostate gland is very small (about the size of a pea) but will grow rapidly during puberty in response to the production of the male hormone testosterone. In a mature male the prostate is typically the size of a walnut and weighs about one ounce. The prostate gland is divided into the three sections – peripheral, central and transition. The peripheral section is located at the rear of the prostate gland and is the section of the prostate in which prostatitis and prostate cancer are most likely to develop. The transition section, which lies in the middle of the prostate gland and surrounds the urethra, is the area in which benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) is seen. There are a variety of problems associated with the prostate gland, the most common of which is BPH. This condition, which is a growth of non-cancerous cells within the transition section of the prostate gland causes an enlargement of the gland and exerts pressure on the urethra which, in turn, leads to difficulties in urinating. Other common problems include prostatitis, which is an inflammation or infection of the prostate gland, and prostate cancer. Enlargement of the prostate gland will affect about half of all men by the time they reach the age of 60 and increases with age to affect some ninety percent of the male population by the age of 80. Prostate cancer will affect approximately...