Prostate cancer is the most common type of cancer found among men, developed in the prostate gland, which produces seminal fluid and forms a small gland in the male reproductive system. The American Cancer Society estimates that about 1 in 8 men will have prostate cancer diagnosed during their entire life. Hence, early diagnosis of the disease is significant because it increases the chances of survival and successful treatment.
Prostate cancer treatment and screening are some of the best ways to catch the disease. It can be defined as testing for prostate cancer before the symptoms actually start to appear. Screening aims to detect the cancer and initiate the prostate cancer treatment early at a time when there is a much greater chance of successful treatment. The most commonly used testing for prostate cancer screening are the Prostate-Specific Antigen (PSA) Test and the Digital Rectal Examination (DRE).
While these tests do not represent a definitive means of diagnosis and testing for prostate cancer, they indicate the extent of prostate cancer therapy that should be devised for the patients.
1. Early Detection Saves Lives
The primary advantage of prostate cancer treatment is early detection. Prostate cancer grows slowly, many times when the patient is asymptomatic. Thus, prostate cancer must be screened regularly so that it can be suspected in its earliest and most treatable stages.
When diagnosed early, prostate cancer remains confined and can be effectively removed by surgery, radiotherapy, or other options as a primary cure for prostate cancer. Studies have shown that men under regular prostate cancer therapy are likely to survive it compared to others who are diagnosed later when the cancer has spread to other parts. Early detection and intervention reduce complications significantly, improve life quality, and save lives.
2. It Helps Identify High-Risk Individuals
Prostate cancer affects men differently based on different parameters, including their ages, family histories, and races. Some persons are at higher risk, and the screening helps identify these high-risk individuals very early on. Identifying those at an increased risk allows the physicians to monitor these men closely and recommend these men undergo screening and evaluation more frequently, resulting in an earlier diagnosis. With high-risk groups, an early intervention can greatly improve the treatment options available and affect the ultimate outcome.
3. It Gives Peace of Mind
For many men, the fear of an undiagnosed illness can be all-consuming. Regular testing for prostate cancer gives peace of mind, especially if results are negative or show no significant abnormalities. Being aware of one’s active effort to maintain one’s health can help men reduce anxiety and devote attention to adopting a healthy lifestyle. By being diagnosed early, men could analyze when and how to act, and how to go about it with treatment options in consultation with the best uro oncologist in Noida.
4. Helps Prevent Advanced Cancer
Among cancers, prostate cancer has screening, which might prevent advanced disease. When detected early, prostate cancer might stay well within the prostate gland and probably does not need aggressive treatment. With behaviour change, advanced cancer will usually spread to lymph nodes, bones, or other parts of the body and will certainly require aggressive treatment, such as chemotherapy, with a corresponding decrease in the likelihood of survival. The earlier it is caught, the more often treatment is possible before the prostate cancer becomes invasive, with a correspondingly better prognosis. Screening averts an event of difficulty in treatment.
Even though testing for prostate cancer saves lives, there are controversies associated with it. One of the foremost issues is whether screening may lead to overdiagnosis. Some cancers of the prostate grow so slowly that they are unlikely to be of much threat during the life of the person. Screening might lead to the detection of these slow-growing cancers that would not need treatment and therefore really have unnecessary overtreatment, side effects, and anxiety.
Also, there is a dispute about the validity of the PSA test. It could give both false positives (indicating the presence of cancer when none), resulting in unnecessary biopsies, or false negatives, therefore missing diagnoses. These considerations arise the need for a shared decision-making process wherein potential benefit and risks of screening are discussed by the patient and for more details book an appointmentwith Dr. Vipin Tyagi, today.