What Is The Prostate Gland?

Wade is in his late 40s. In the past he has never been particularly conscious about his health. However he does jog about 20 minutes on his treadmill each day. He was on blood pressure medicine. He was a non smoker. But he did eat whatever he wanted and was a beer drinker. He considered himself to be in okay health. Nevertheless his doctor felt he was nearing the age were regular prostate screening is a good ideal. Wade really was not sure what that was but it sounded uncomfortable so he did not keep the appointment. Approximately 1 year later, it was time to renew his blood pressure prescription. But his physician would not renew it until he took the prostate screen. When Wade found out all it was is just a simple blood test called a PSA he was a little embarrassed. The results came back as high readings, so the doctor drew more blood and did it again. The re-test had the same results. Wade’s doctor then referred him to a urologist, who also took blood, and ran another test, and got the same results. At this point the urologist recommended a prostate biopsy. This is considered as an invasive procedure but this was no longer Wade’s main concern. The results from the biopsy was confirmed a positive for prostate cancer. The urologist considered it as discovered in time. Wade had a procedure known as a prostatectomy which does require a recovery period afterwards. But Wade will be okay. But he can’t help from being terrified to think what could have happened during that year he ignored the doctor’s advice to get tested. It could have been a much worse situation just due to his lack of knowledge.

There are stories, just like this, repeated thousands of times every year. And unfortunately the outcome is not always good. That is the reason for this article. There are many men, and the women who love them, that are not really sure exactly what the male prostate is. This brief information will present a basic overview about the prostate and the most frequent things disorders that can occur.

WHAT IS THE MALE PROSTATE?
It is a small gland, kind of resembling a walnut, located in front of the rectum and directly underneath the bladder. It is a male organ. It surrounds the neck of the bladder and urethra tube. A picture can bee seen Here.

The urethra is the tube line that carries urine from the bladder and out the penis. The prostate gland is only partly glandular tissue and also part muscular. It contains ducts opening into the prostatic portion of the urethra neck. The prostate is made up of three lobes: a center lobe and one lobe on each side. The prostate begins development before birth and continues to grow until adulthood.

The medical world is still not 100% certain of all that the prostate does. But what is known is that one of its main functions is to make some of the fluids that carry semen sperm. In this part of the male reproductive system, the prostate makes, not all, but a good part of the fluid that is the semen. During male orgasm the prostate helps to shoot out the semen. This is a combination of the sperm made in the testicles. The semen fluid leaves the penis during ejaculation.

WHAT ARE MOST COMMON PROSTATE DISORDERS?
In general there are four common prostate disorders:

PROSTATODYNIA: This is a prostate inflammation not due to bacterial infection. Typically there is not the presence of infection fighting cells, or antibodies, in the urine of men who suffer from the disease. Prostatodynia can be a chronic and painful disease.

Prostatodynia symptoms can include fever, chills, pain in the lower back and genital area. There can also be body aches, pain or burning sensation during urination, and the frequent and urgent need to urinate. Symptoms characteristically go away and then come back without warning. How prostatodynia differs from other prostate inflammations is that the urine and fluid from the prostate shows no signs of a known infecting organism or of cells that the body usually produces to fight infections.

Prostatodynia treatments can vary from antibiotics, non steroid anti-inflammatory agents, and medications for chronic pain to muscle relaxers.

PROSTATITIS: is classified as a benign condition. It is not prostate cancer. It is also caused by inflammation and swelling of the prostate. There can be discomfort deep inside the pelvis. In addition there also may be discomfort when passing urine or with ejaculation. This can spread to other areas of the pelvis.

This condition can affect males of any age group. The National Institutes of Health reports that Prostatitis may account for up to 25 per cent of all office visits for complaints involving male genital and urinary systems from young and the middle-age. In addition, chronic Prostatitis, which means it does not go away, is the #1 reason men under the age of 50 goes to see urologists. This chronic condition can also be related to other urinary tract infections. The condition is considered chronic if it lasts more than three months.
When it is caused by an infection Prostatitis can be treated with antibiotics. Treatment can be personalized for individual cases. Other types of Prostatitis can be harder to treat, particularly if symptoms have been ignored for some time.

BENIGN PROSTATIC HYPERLASIA (BPH): Also commonly known as prostate enlargement is quite common in older men. It also is a benign condition which is not cancer. Prostate enlargement occurs frequently in most men from age 50 and older. Also prostate enlargement occurs in 43 per cent of men age 60 and older. Enlarged prostate, means that your prostate gland has grown bigger than its normal walnut shaped size. If it reaches a point where it starts to squeeze the urethra tube, which passes through the prostate, difficulties with urination can occur.

BPH is quite common, and it is rarely life threatening. The condition is what you frequently see on the TV commercials for treatments like Avodart. BPH treatments may require prescription antibiotics. In some very advanced cases, an operation is performed to widen the urethral. This procedure is called a trans-urethral resection of the prostate (TURP). General anesthetic is used, an instrument is inserted up the urethra through the penis and some of the prostate is removed which improves urine flow. The surgery may require a couple of days in hospital, with a catheter installed during recovery.

PROSTATE CANCER: Of course this would be considered as the most serious condition and the only one that can be life-threatening. Unfortunately prostate cancer does claim the lives of thousands of men every year. What is one of the most worrying aspects is that many prostate cancers develop without symptoms noticeable at all.
Prostate cancer is the second largest cause cancer deaths in men, after lung cancer. Almost one out of eleven men will develop prostate cancer during his lifetime. It occurs when some of the cells of the prostate reproduce far more rapidly than normal cells, causing a swelling or tumor. However, unlike BPH enlargements, prostate cancer cells will eventually break out of the prostate and invade other parts of the body, particularly the bones and lymph nodes, producing secondary tumors, a process known as metastasis. Once the cancer escapes out from the prostate, there are possible treatments but for now there is no cure.
For this reason, the most important thing for you to remember from this article is early screening and early detection. With early detection the survival rate of prostate cancer is over 90%.

Your very first step is a simple blood test call PSA. This test measures the amount of prostate specific antigen in the blood. The prostate releases PSA into a man's blood. Healthy men have low amounts of PSA in the blood. If the screening test comes back showing elevated levels then further testing, including a prostate biopsy, may be advised by the physician.

However it all starts with the PSA screening. This test is recommended as an annual blood screen for men in their 50's and older. However African American males have much higher rates of prostate cancer. Also any man with a history of prostate cancer on the father's side. Men belonging to these groups really should begin getting testing their mid 40's.

It is a very simple test that could save your life.

By: Greg Ford

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