Prostate Cancer Is 2nd Most Common in Men

The prostate, one of the male sex glands, is about the size of a walnut and is located below the bladder and above the rectum. The prostate produces semen, the fluid that carries sperm from the testicles. Prostate cancer is often detected during a rectal examination, which is recommended for all men older than 40.

It is the second most common cancer in men, after skin cancer, according to the American Cancer Society. About one out of every 11 men will develop prostate cancer. The incidence of prostate cancer increases with age through the most advanced ages--more than 80% of all prostate cancers are diagnosed in men older than 65. An estimated 106,000 new cases of prostate cancer will be diagnosed in the United States this year. Also, approximately 30,000 men will die from the disease this year, making it the second leading cause of cancer deaths in men, after lung cancer.

The disease is treated with surgery, either alone or in combination with radiation and/or hormones and chemotherapy. Sometimes the treatment results in impotence, according to the National Cancer Institute.

Prostate cancer is usually curable if caught early, before symptoms (such as pain or difficulty urinating) appear. But if the cancer spreads beyond the gland, the outcome is less certain. Sixty percent of all prostate cancers are diagnosed while the cancer is still confined to the prostate; the five-year survival rate for patients whose tumors are discovered at this stage is 84%, according to the cancer society.

If the cancer has spread widely, the median survival is from 2 1/2 to 3 years after diagnosis, according to Dr. Andrew Dorr of the National Cancer Institute. “In those patients, about 50% will be dead within three years,” he said.

Survival rates for all stages combined have steadily improved since 1940 and in the last 20 years have increased from 48% to 70%, according to the cancer society.