By Henrylito D. Tacio
While most Filipinos start to celebrate the Christmas season in September, it is also the time of the year when the Department of Health celebrates Prostate Cancer Awareness Month. Based on the data released by the Global Cancer Observatory in 2020, prostate cancer is the fifth leading cancer site and the third leading cause of cancer deaths among Filipino males. That year, 8,242 new cases of prostate cancer were recorded, with 3,164 deaths.
According to the National Kidney and Transplant Institute (NKTI), prostate cancer develops in 19.3 out of every 100,000 Filipino men. One out of 100 Filipino men would have died from prostate cancer before age 75, according to the Philippine Cancer Society, Inc. (PCSI).
Movie actor Nestor de Villa was 75 when he died of prostate cancer in 2004. Davao photojournalist Rene Lumawag was also 75 when he died. Rod Navarro was 73 when doctors pronounced him dead in 2003. Ross Rival was 62 when he succumbed to the disease in 2007. After all, as PCSI pointed out, “Prostate cancer occurs mainly in older men.” More than 80% of the men diagnosed with prostate cancer, studies showed, are older. In the PCS study, it was found that the average age at the time of diagnosis was 66 years old.
Another factor that may put a man at risk is genetics. If you have a family member or relatives who have had prostate cancer before, then you are most likely to have it, too.
“Prostate cancer is a malignant growth that originates in the prostate, a small gland that lies under the urinary bladder and surrounds the initial part of the urethra and whose secretion forms part of semen,” explains Dr. Eduardo Gonzales in his Manila Bulletin column. In young men, the gland is usually pili-nut sized, but as men age, the prostate gland normally enlarges or undergoes hypertrophy.
The cancer is said to be slow-growing. “Historically, most men found out that they had prostate cancer when it was (already) advanced, and they died a few years later,” reads the Senate Bill 1018, which was filed by Senator Manuel “Lito” Lapid. “This explains why the average age of death from prostate cancer is so near the average age of diagnosis.”
In the early stage, prostate cancer is usually asymptomatic. But in some instances, the early-stage of the disease may have the following signs and symptoms: frequent urination (during the day and/or at night), difficulty in starting (hesitancy), maintaining, or stopping the urine; and a weak or interrupted urine stream. Other symptoms include straining to urinate, inability to urinate, loss of control of urination, difficulty urinating when standing (requiring sitting during urination), pain with urination or ejaculation, and blood in the urine or in the semen. Signs and symptoms of advanced prostate cancer (late-stage prostate cancer) that has already spread from the prostate gland to elsewhere in the body may include: a new dull, then progressively severe, pain in the bones, especially in the low back; unexplained weight loss, and fatigue. The following nonspecific symptoms may also be observed: increasing shortness of breath while doing activities previously well tolerated, low-impact bone fracture with only minor trauma, and swelling of the legs related to obstruction of the lymph tissue by prostate cancer.
“If you are suffering from any of these symptoms, go and see your doctor immediately so that the cause can be diagnosed and any relevant treatment administered,” recommends Professor Peter Lim Huat Chye, senior consultant and advisor of the Department of Urology at the Changi General Hospital in Singapore.
The key to beating prostate cancer is early diagnosis. Among those who survived the disease, because they discovered the cancer early, include: Harry Belafonte, Warren Buffett, Robert De Niro, Rudy Giuliani, John Kerry, Ian McKellen, Ryan O’Neal, Colin Powell, and Ben Stiller.
The health department urges Filipino men who are 40 years old and above to see an urologist to ensure that all is well “down there.” “A man should have a digital rectal exam (DRE) at age 45 if he has no family history of prostate cancer, or earlier at age 40 if some members of the family have it,” suggested Dr. Michael Jonathan Latayan, a urology consultant at Metro Davao Medical and Research Center in Davao City.
Another way is through a prostate-specific antigen (PSA) blood test. “If prostate cancer is found as a result of screening with the PSA test or DRE confirmed by ultrasound and biopsy, it will probably be at an earlier, more treatable stage than if no screening were done,” the PCSI said.
There are several treatments available against prostate cancer. “The most conservative choice is surgical removal of the walnut-sized gland, but this comes at great risk of losing sexual function or becoming incontinent,” wrote Time’s Dr. Ian K. Smith. “Radiation treatment, the second major option, may be as effective as surgery and is often used in combination with it,” Dr. Smith wrote, adding that it carries risks similar to surgery in terms of incontinence and impotence. “Lower on the list is a promising new treatment – though far from the most effective – in which the cancerous cells are freeze-killed,” wrote Dr. Smith. “It can be used together with other therapies, but it’s more common when the cancer has spread.”
Can prostate cancer be prevented? Dr. Jaime S.D. Songco, of the Urologic Oncology Section of Makati Medical Center, recommends a healthy diet of fruits and vegetables. “Avoid fatty food and choose natural sources of vitamins over supplements,” he suggested.
Research suggests diets high in meat and high-fat dairy may increase the risk of prostate cancer, he said. He also recommends his patients to exercise regularly. – ###
