Prostate cancer

The prostate is a small gland in the pelvis that's found only in men. It's located between the penis and the bladder and surrounds the urethra, the tube that carries urine from the bladder to the penis.

The main function of the prostate is to help in the production of semen. The prostate produces a thick white fluid that is then liquefied by a special protein known as prostate-specific antigen (PSA). The fluid is then mixed with sperm, produced by the testicles, to create semen.

Prostate cancer

Prostate cancer is the most common cancer in men. It is responsible for 25% of newly diagnosed cases of cancer in England and Wales.

The chances of developing prostate cancer increase as you get older. Most cases develop in men aged 65 or older.

For reasons that are not understood, prostate cancer is more common in men who are of Afro-Caribbean or African descent and less common in men of Asian descent.

The causes of prostate cancer are largely unknown.

The outlook for prostate cancer is generally good despite it being relatively challenging to treat. This is because, unlike many other cancers, prostate cancer usually progresses very slowly. It can take up to 15 years for the cancer to spread from the prostate to other parts of the body (metastasis), typically the bones. In many cases, prostate cancer won't affect a man's natural life span.

Once the cancer has spread to the bones it can't be cured, and treatment is focused on prolonging life and relieving symptoms. Approximately 9,000 men die from prostate cancer every year in England and Wales.

Prostate cancer can be cured when treated in its early stages. Treatments include removing the prostate, hormone therapy and radiotherapy (using radiation to kill the cancerous cells).

All the treatment options carry the risk of significant side effects including loss of sexual desire (libido), the inability to maintain or obtain an erection (sexual dysfunction) and urinary incontinence. For this reason many men decide to delay treatment until there is a significant risk that the cancer might spread.

Not enough is known about the causes of prostate cancer to prevent the condition from occurring. However, several studies have shown that eating plenty of tomatoes may reduce the risk. This could be because tomatoes contain a substance called lycopene which can help prevent damage to the DNA in our cells (antioxidant).