Influence of Heredity and Diet in Prostate Cancer Prognosis

Prostate cancer prognosis is not only about detection, but is the sum of the clinical test methods used to determine the onset and growth of prostate cancer, plus the type of treatment suitable to the stage in which the cancer has progressed, and the medicine schedule prescribed.

It is the considered opinion of all medical practitioners that this prostate cancer is not terminal in nature. In a study on this subject coauthored by Peter Albertson of the University of Connecticut Health Center in Farmington, it is explained thus: “Because prostate cancer usually grows slowly, many tiny cancers probably do not need treatment. These are the men who should active surveillance”.

Some significant progress has been made since 1990’s by Australian health care researchers that there is a significant contribution of dietary habits to the onset and growth of prostate cancer among people. Those who consume relatively high fat, grilled or processed meats, when consumed on a daily basis is conducive to the onset of prostate cancer. They also concluded after extensive studies that consumption of vegetables like cauliflower; broccoli, cabbage, and sprouts reduce/eliminate the risk of begetting prostate cancer.

The inhabitants of the advanced, developed countries like Europe and America consume rich foods due to their rich background and hence are exposed to the risk of prostrate cancer, when compared to the developing nations in South Asia, where a sizable population gets only one square meal per day with a poor quality of life. So, in USA where the prevalent prostate cancer patient ratio is 16% of the population, it is imperative that undergoing tests for prostate cancer are rigorously undertaken on a regular basis.

A cheerful news item in the Journal of the American Medical Association states that low grade prostrate cancer patients have a much reduced level of risk of succumbing to the disease up to even 20 years after prostate cancer prognosis.

All elderly people more than 50 years of age are prone to the prostate cancer disease and hence it is in their interest to know the symptoms of this malaise. They consist of: difficulty in micturition(passing urine), obstructions to urination, blockade of urine, nocturnal increase in passing urine, intermittent/sporadic urine flow, suffering from pain during urination, traces of blood along with urine and pain in the lower back, hips and thighs. These people will have to certainly undergo Tests for prostate cancer, since some of the above symptoms are prevalent in non-cancerous, benign prostate enlargement also.

Genes and the heredity are very important factors in passing of this disease to the successive generations. Hence those families, where father or sibling had a history of cancer are advised to note down this factor of cancer incidence as 1 to 4 to 1 to 7 , when compared to 1 to 13 of normal persons.

Therefore, for those with family history of cancer, tests for positive cancer are mandatory from the age of 40 onwards. Digital Rectal Exams(DRE) and blood tests for prostate-specific antigen(PSA) have to be done at regular intervals. Prostate cancer prognosis is entirely dependent on the technological advancements in the medical field for the same.