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Overview
Prostate cancer is a cancer of the small walnut-shaped gland in men that produces the seminal fluid that nourishes and transports sperm.
Prostate cancer is one of the most common types of cancer in men, affecting about one in six men in the United States. Prostate cancer can only occur in men, as the prostate is exclusively a male reproductive gland. It develops most often in men over fifty years of age and occurs when cells of the prostate change (mutate) and begin to multiply out of control. These cells may spread (metastasize) from the prostate to other parts of the body, especially bones and lymph nodes.
Prostate cancer usually grows slowly and initially remains confined to the prostate gland, where it may not cause serious harm. While some types of prostate cancer grow slowly and may need minimal or no treatment, other types are aggressive and can spread quickly. If prostate cancer is detected early, when it is still confined to the prostate gland, the patient has a better chance for successful treatment.
Symptoms
Prostate cancer may not produce any noticeable symptoms in its early stages or, if it does, can be mistaken for benign enlargement which is found in many men as they become older. Therefore, some cases of prostate cancer are not detected until the cancer has spread beyond the prostate. When signs and symptoms do occur, they depend on how advanced the cancer is and how far and extensively the cancer has spread into the patient’s body.
For most men, prostate cancer is first detected during a routine screening such as a blood test for a prostate-specific marker (called prostate specific antigen or PSA test) or a digital rectal exam.
Diagnosis
Early diagnosis of pancreatic cancer is difficult because the symptoms are so varied and non-specific. Therefore, pancreatic cancer is often not diagnosed until it is advanced and has spread to other parts of the body.
Determining Treatment Options
In most cases, a physician will recommend a biopsy for a patient with an elevated PSA level and an abnormal digital rectal exam.
The Gleason Grading System is used to characterize the aggressiveness of prostate cancer. A pathologist determines the Gleason grade based on how closely the cells of the patient’s prostate resemble those of a normal prostate. The closer the cancer cells resemble normal cells, the lower the Gleason score. A high Gleason Grading score indicates the presence of an aggressive form of prostate cancer.
Physicians may also order diagnostic imaging tests to determine the extent of the cancer in the prostate and whether cancer cells have spread to surrounding tissues or to other parts of the body
Treatments
There are many treatment options for patients with prostate cancer. These include:
- Surgery—surgeons remove the prostate as well as some tissue surrounding it, and may also remove a sample of lymph nodes in nearby tissue to determine whether the cancer has spread beyond the prostate.
- Minimally invasive surgery—removes the prostate laparoscopically (with a few small incisions).
- Chemotherapy—uses drugs to stop the growth of cancer cells, either by killing the cells or by stopping them from dividing. When chemotherapy is taken by mouth or injected into a vein or muscle, the drugs enter the bloodstream and can reach cancer cells throughout the body (systemic chemotherapy). When chemotherapy is placed directly into the spinal column, an organ, or a body cavity such as the abdomen, the drugs mainly affect cancer cells in those areas (regional chemotherapy). The way the chemotherapy is given depends on the type and stage of the cancer being treated.
- Radiation therapy—uses high-energy x-rays or other types of radiation to kill cancer cells or keep them from growing. There are two types of radiation therapy. External radiation therapy uses a machine outside the body to send radiation toward the cancer. Internal radiation therapy uses a radioactive substance sealed in needles, wires, or catheters that are placed directly into or near the cancer. The way the radiation therapy is given depends on the type and stage of the cancer being treated.
Biogen Idec Investigational Treatments
- Clinical trials—using investigational treatments may be discussed as a possible treatment option for some patients, depending on the specific requirements of the different trials and the patient’s cancer stage and disease status. Click here to learn more about clinical trials. About Clinical Trials
Please contact Biogen Idec directly using the link below for current clinical trials in this disease.
To contact Biogen, click here.
Prostate Cancer Resources
http://www.mayoclinic.org/prostate-cancer/
http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/prostatecancer.html
http://www.centerwatch.com/patient/studies/cat36.html
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