By Rodney Herbert Most early-stage prostate cancers cause no symptoms at all. This means a man can have prostate cancer and feel completely fine. Because early prostate tumors are usually small and slow-growing, they often don’t trigger obvious signs. Still, it’s important to know what might show up and why relying on symptoms can [...]
By Rodney Herbert Prostate cancer is often slow-growing, and many men do not need immediate treatment. Instead, doctors may suggest monitoring the cancer over time. Two main monitoring strategies are Active Surveillance and Watchful Waiting. While they sound similar, they have important differences in approach, follow-up, and goals. Below, we compare and contrast these [...]
By Rodney Herbert The digital rectal exam (DRE) involves a doctor inserting a gloved, lubricated finger into the rectum to feel the back surface of the prostate gland. This simple physical exam can detect hard lumps or irregularities on the prostate that might indicate cancer. Historically, the DRE was a cornerstone of prostate cancer [...]
By Rodney Herbert Prostate cancer screening often starts with a PSA blood test. PSA stands for prostate-specific antigen, a protein made by the prostate gland. Doctors look not just at the PSA number itself, but also at PSA velocity (how fast PSA changes over time) and PSA density (PSA level relative to prostate size) [...]
By Rodney Herbert Prostate cancer screening often uses a blood test called PSA (prostate-specific antigen). For many years, doctors followed a simple rule: if a man's PSA was above 4.0, it was a red flag, and if it was below 4.0, it was considered normal. Today we know it’s not that simple. In this [...]