Easy as Health
- Health Information for a Better Life
A Drop of Prevention
Although lung cancer continues to be the
number one cause of cancer death for men, it is prostate cancer that is
most frequently diagnosed. The Prostate Cancer Research Foundation of
Canada says some five million men are in their prostate cancer-risk
years. But, as male baby boomers age and more men are tested, the number
of new cases is expected to double over the next decade. In Ontario, an
estimated 7,600 men were diagnosed with prostate cancer in 2002. In the
same year, 1,600 men in Ontario died of prostate cancer.
The exact cause of prostate cancer is unknown. What is known is that
cancer of the prostate most often occurs in men over the age of fifty,
with married men being at higher risk than single men. The Canadian
Cancer Society recommends that men over the age of 50 discuss with their
doctor the potential benefits and risks of early detection of prostate
cancer through a prostate-specific antigen (PSA) test, a simple test
that measures the amount of prostate-specific antigen in a man's blood.
Some risk factors
Family History : Research shows you have at least twice the risk
of developing prostate cancer if your father or brother has been
diagnosed with the disease. If more than one close family member has
been diagnosed with prostate cancer or if it was diagnosed at a
relatively young age, (under 60) the risk may be further increased.
Ethnicity: Prostate cancer appears to be
more common in men of African ancestry as compared with Caucasian men.
Asian and Aboriginal populations seem to have the lowest rates of
prostate cancer.
Diet: Research shows that a high fat diet
may increase a man's risk of developing prostate cancer. On the other
hand, diets that are rich in certain fruits and vegetables that contain
lycopene may be protective or decrease the risk of developing prostate
cancer.
Some general dietary recommendations to
consider include :
- Eat less dietary fat
- Eat more fruit and vegetables,
including tomatoes, tomato sauce or tomato juice, and pink
grapefruit, papaya, and watermelon
- Eat more dietary fibre
- Eat more soy protein, such as
tofu, tempeh, and soymilk
There was a time when surgery was the
only hope for men with prostate cancer. But today, there are a number of
other options in addition to surgery, including external beam radiation
and brachytherapy, hormone therapy and watchful waiting, a continuous
series of PSA tests.
