I am sure that many of you may know someone personally who is suffering from prostate cancer, or who has died from it. It may appear that prostate cancer is really having a grip on our men. More and more when a man dies and you ask what is the cause of death, there is a high chance that you will hear “prostate cancer”.

Cancer is the major cause of death in St Vincent and the Grenadines. Among the several types of cancers, prostate cancer occupies a very high place for men, in terms of mortality. However, the good news is men do not have to die from prostate cancer, since there are screening programmes available for the early detection and treatment of the disease.

So, why do our men die? The simple answer is… they do not get screened. They do not go to see their physician and they do not reveal the symptoms that are affecting them that are possible signs of cancer.

The prostate is a walnut-sized gland. It produces the fluid that nourishes and transports sperm on their journey to fuse with a female ovum, or egg, and produce human life. The prostate contracts and forces these fluids out during orgasm. The protein excreted by the prostate, prostate-specific antigen (PSA), helps semen retain its liquid state. An excess of this protein in the blood is one of the first signs of prostate cancer.

The urethra is a tube through which sperm and urine exit the body. It also passes through the prostate. As such, the prostate is also responsible for urine control. It can tighten and restrict the flow of urine through the urethra.

There are usually no symptoms during the early stages of prostate cancer. When symptoms appear, they usually involve frequent urges to urinate, especially at night, difficulty commencing and maintaining urination, blood in the urine, painful urination and ejaculation, difficulty achieving or maintaining an erection. Advanced prostate cancer can spread to other parts of the body and can cause bone fractures, leg weakness, the inability to control urine and stool and finally death.

The exact cause of prostate cancer is unclear, but there are many possible risk factors. Men older than 50 years have higher risk, but that does not mean that younger men cannot get prostate cancer.

Studies have suggested that a diet high in red meat or high-fat dairy products may increase a person’s chances of developing prostate cancer, but the link is neither confirmed, nor clear.

It is often believed that obesity is linked to the development of prostate cancer. Obesity is a risk factor for many chronic diseases.

Continued Next Week: Part 2: Diagnosing Prostate Cancer and Treatment.

Dr Rosmond Adams, MD is a medical doctor and a public health specialist. He is also an ethicist with training in research ethics and medical ethics. He is the head of Health Information, Communicable Disease and Emergency Response at the Caribbean Public Health Agency (CARPHA).

He is also a member of the World Health Organization (WHO) Global Coordination Mechanism (GCM) on the Prevention and Control of Non-Communicable Diseases (NCDs).

(The views expressed here are not written on behalf of CARPHA nor the WHO)