The Risks Behind Prostate Cancer Surgery

It certainly isn't an understatement to say that there's a lot of fear surrounding cancer. So, there should be no wonder as to why many prostate cancer sufferers are quick to agree to whatever treatment options are available to them. One of these options is prostate cancer surgery. On the surface it seems like a perfect treatment for sufferers; it's fast and it removes the source of the problem... the infected prostate. Yet, what are the risks behind surgery? Many sufferers go on the operating table without knowing the risks, then get overwhelmed if the worst does happen to them. Well, before you consider such procedures, continue reading on to discover all of the risks behind prostate cancer surgery.

1. Pain

Pain is one of the most obvious problem caused by surgery. This is because all surgical procedures, even the most basic will be somewhat painful. Granted, the doctors and nurses will provide morphine or other painkillers, but these are only but so effective. There will be periods where you will just have to feel the discomfort, and it will be far from pleasant.

2. Risks of Anesthesia

When it comes to the risks behind prostate cancer surgery, many may not even think of anesthesia. But anesthesia can carry complications, with the most major being blood clots, heart attack or a stroke. Granted, these complications tend to be rare, but still need to be thought about since they do happen.

3. Bleeding

Excessive bleeding is another one of the risks that you need to know about. Prostate cancer surgery is especially prone to such a risk because the prostate gland contains many blood vessels. If a person bleeds too much, they may need to get a blood transfusion, a process that carries even more risks, despite how routine it is.

4. Incontinence

Incontinence is one of the risks of surgery because the procedure negatively interferes with the muscles that control urinary flow. Incontinence can cause urine to leak when a man coughs or laughs and/or it can result in an excessive urinary urges along with an abnormal flow.

5. Impotence

One of the risks behind prostate surgery that negatively affects a man's romantic/sexual health is impotence. This occurs because the procedure damages or removes nerves that are vital for arousal. However, usually the body can regenerate these nerves after a few months, though for some men it may take up to two years before they regain normal erectile functioning.

6. Penis Shrinkage

Penis shrinkage that is strange yet potentially devastating for some men. Many patients notice a 15 percent decrease in the length of their genitalia after undergoing prostate cancer surgery.

7. Sterility

Lastly, prostate cancer surgery can make a man permanently sterile, since the procedure cuts the vessels between the urethra and the testicles. Although the man can technically still produce sperm, he will not be able to ejaculate it since the connection has been severed.

You can learn more about prostate cancer as well as the symptoms of prostate cancer on my website http://www.SymptomsOfProstateCancer.info - My website includes a whole range of articles focusing on the problems caused by prostate cancer, treatments and of course what you should do if you think you have prostate cancer.

Prostate Cancer Risk Factors

The exact cause of this disease has not yet been discovered. No one can explain why one man develops prostate problems along with cancer and the other man does not. Cancer cannot be caught from another person. It is not contagious. However, there are some risk factors that make it more likely for some men to develop this disease.

Age is the number one cause of prostate cancer. It is rare to find a man under the age of 40 to have the disease. The chances of that happening are 1 in 10,000! As a man grows older, his risk factors rise dramatically. Most men who develop the disease are over the age of 65.

Family history is another risk factor for prostate cancer. If a man has a father or brother who has had the disease, he is more likely to develop it. Race is another deciding factor. This dosease is found in more African-American men than white or Hispanic men. Asian and American Indian men have a smaller risk of developing this disease.

A little known risk of developing prostate cancer is men with prostate cells called (PIN) prostatic intraepithelial neoplasia. These cells look abnormal under a microscope and men with these cells are considered high risk.

Diet is another factor is deciding who develops prostate cancer. Scientists have proved that those men who have diets rich in fats and red meats are more at risk of developing cancer. Men who have a diet rich in fruits and vegetables have been shown to have a lower risk of developing this disease.

This is just a few of the prostate cancer risk factors but the good news is you can control some of them. Obviously you cannot control your race, or your family history and you cannot stop the aging process. You can help yourself by changing your dietary habits and taking better care of your body.

Scientists who have studied prostate cancer are looking at possible links between the disease and smoking, lack of exercise, obesity and a virus passed through sexual intercourse. All of these are being studied and with no final conclusion, at this time. Scientists are also studying a link between vasectomies and prostate cancer. At this time, this link has not been proven.

Most men who have risk factors like the ones listed above do not mean you will get prostate cancer. Men who do get this disease often do not have any risk factors except their age. One in three men are likely to develop prostate problems or cancer whether they have more than one risk factor or not.

If you think you may have a high risk for developing prostate cancer or have symptoms of the disease, you should talk with your doctor. Your doctor may suggest you see an urologist who specializes in urinary problems and problems with the male reproductive organs. They should be up-to-date with all the newest information, research, and treatment plans for thils disease.

About the Author
Verlyn Ross owns and operates a website dedicated specifically to providing health and fitness information. It includes a wealth of free articles in which you may have an interest. For a great place to get Answers, go here! http://www.achieve-health-fitness.com

Prostate Health and Fruits and Vegetables

There have been daily discoveries to fight cancer that have added both to the quality and length of the stricken. So much has been learned to naturally promote prostate health including the types of fruits and vegetables that inhibit the growth of cancer cells. The American Cancer Society recommends five services and fruits and vegetables which includes dozens of nutrients with decrease cancer risks. Dietary fiber derived from beans, lentils and peas in high quantities have been associated with decreasing prostate cancer risks while promoting prostate health. What’s sad about this statistic is that most American men seldom achieve the minimum daily quantities necessary for prostate health.

Cooked tomatoes, for instance, are rich in lycopene which has beneficial antioxidant properties and concentrate in the prostate thus promoting prostate health and risk reduction for cancer. Garlic, leeks, onions and chives are part of the allium vegetable group contain organosulfur compounds which interfere with cancer cell replication and inhibits potential tumor growth. Cruciferous vegetables like broccoli, brussel spouts, cauliflower and kale are full of sulfurphane and isothiocyanates with block and deactive carginogens which are environmental chemicals which promote cancer. Citrus fruit peels also contain prostrate health promoting chemicals that has thwarted tumor growth in lab experiments. The peels contain limonene and geraniol, which in the lab do great things. They still taste horrible, and can be skipped in favor of citrus pulp which tastes a lot better, and contain pectin fiber thought to stop cancer cell spread.

Considered by many to be a nutritional disease, prostate dysfunction is much more prevalent in Western rather than Eastern society. This is due, in great part, to the fact that Western countries diet are filled with animal fats in the form of red meat, eggs and dairy products whereas Eastern society, in contrast, includes more fruits and vegetables which exert a protective effect and promotes prostate health.

It is much more common in developed Western countries that emphasize animal-derived foods, such as red meat, dairy products, and eggs, all foods that tend to accumulate environmental toxins. In contrast, fruit- and vegetable-rich diets exert a protective effect.

Long entrenched views on what is considered nutritionally wholesome foods are being challenged in today’s society as evidence grows suggesting an alternative to maintain prostate health. There is expanding documentation that supports the idea that to promote prostate health may require a serious reduction in milk and dairy products because excessive calcium intake suppresses the production of a certain form of vitamin D which is central in the inhibition of prostate cancer.

In stark contrast, men whose diet is high in tomatoes and tomato based food including ketchup and tomato paste used in making spaghetti sauce supplemented by a high fruit diet reportedly are less likely to develop prostate cancer. It has become quite clear that these items contain antioxidant like lycopene and through the fruit, another prostate-protecting element, fructose promotes prostate health. Unlike calcium, fructose stimulates the production of vitamin D that inhibits tumors.

There are a myriad of nutrients in diets that also promote prostate health that are found in many foods including zinc which is specific to the prostate. Folk wisdom usually has finds its roots in reality and eating pumpkin seeds to promote male reproductive and prostate health is a truth because the seeds are rich in zinc. Adding zinc to the diet can reduce prostate enlargement. Other nutrients that promote prostate health are selenium which can be derived from brazil nuts or through supplements, vitamin D; vitamin E, an antioxidant that inhibits cancer growth; soy-based foods, which contain the cancer-inhibiting agent genistein; and garlic, which possess cancer-fighting, sulfur-containing compounds.
Make your prostate health a part of your daily regimen. Start today!
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Preventing Prostate Cancer - What Every Man Should Know

Is there a way to prevent prostate cancer? This question is on the mind's of a lot of men, and for good reason. Prostate cancer affects nearly a quarter of a million men each year, so the topic of preventing prostate cancer deserves attention.

First the bad news...

Unfortunately, there is no medical evidence to date that shows how you can prevent prostate cancer entirely. In this regard, prostate cancer is like most other cancers affecting mankind. There's currently no way to prevent it entirely.

Now the good news...

While preventing prostate cancer may be out of reach, you can certainly do things to lower your risk. Namely, you can limit your intake of animal fats and red meat, get plenty of exercise, and eat vegetables on a regular basis (particularly those known to have antioxidant properties.

Dietary Factors

In medical circles, it is widely believed that a diet low in fat and rich with fruits, vegetables and grains may lower the risk of prostate cancer. Specifically, foods that are high in fat from animal sources should be limited. You've probably heard for many years that you should eat five or more fruit and vegetable servings per day. That rule of thumb still holds true today. A diet rich in fruits, vegetables and healthy grains can help lower your risk of prostate cancer.

While this type of diet may not help in preventing prostate cancer entirely, it can still lower your risks and make you healthier overall.

Antioxidants and Cancer Prevention

Antioxidants have become increasingly popular over the years, in tandem with new research that shows how beneficial they can be. Antioxidants occur naturally in certain foods, especially fruits and vegetables.

How do antioxidants help with preventing prostate cancer and other forms of cancer? Well, again, there is not evidence to support the possibility of preventing prostate cancer entirely. But antioxidants can play a role in reducing your risk for this and other forms of cancer. Antioxidants make the DNA within our cells more resistant to damage, which in turn can reduce the risk of certain cancers such as prostate cancer.

Past and current medical research suggests that lycopenes (a type of antioxidant) can lower the risk of prostate cancer. Lycopenes occur naturally in a number of fruits and vegetables [here's that fruit and vegetable plug again] such as spinach, oranges, tomatoes, artichoke hearts and various types of beans.

Preventing Prostate Cancer With Drugs

In the future, there may very well be a drug capable of preventing prostate cancer. But here in the present, that is unfortunately not yet the case. With that being said, there are numerous studies currently underway that hope to identify such a "miracle" drug.

Proscar is one of those drugs currently being studied. But does it help in preventing prostate cancer entirely? As is usually the case, Proscar research is still relatively young, so definitive answers on its capabilities are forthcoming.
Recent studies have shown that men taking this drug were approximately 25% less likely to get prostate cancer (as compared to men taking a placebo instead).

Regardless of early signs of promise, there is no current evidence that Proscar can prevent prostate cancer. Screening and Detection
Because the full-scale prevention of prostate cancer is still out of reach, proper screening is still the first line of defense. When cancer is detected early, the chances of successfully treating the disease are much greater.

* You may republish this article on your website if you keep the author's note below with the active hyperlinks left intact. Copyright 2007, Brandon Cornett.
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Brandon Cornett is the publisher of Prostate Surgery Center, an unbiased guide to prostate cancer and prostate surgery. Learn more about preventing prostate cancer and similar topics by visiting http://www.prostatesurgerycenter.com/