Did you know about 13 out of 100 American men will get prostate cancer in their lifetimes and only about 2-to-3 of them will survive. Prostate cancer is one of the top leading causes of death in men. So do all men have the same level of risk of developing prostate cancer? No! Certain risk factors make some men more likely to develop prostate cancer than others. Let’s take a look at what these factors are.
Age
One of the biggest factors of prostate cancer risk is age. Prostate cancer is rare in younger men (under the age of 40) and the risk rises rapidly after the age of 50. The older the man, the greater the risk of getting prostate cancer. In fact, 6 in 10 cases are found in men 65 and older. Therefore, the older a man gets, the more often he should check for prostate cancer.
Family History
If a man has 3 or more first-degree relatives (such as a father, son, or brother) who had prostate cancer, he is at an increased risk of developing it at some point. Additionally, if he has two close relatives on the same side of the family who have been diagnosed with prostate cancer, he may have a type of prostate cancer that is specifically caused by genetics.
While age and family history are the biggest factors in determining a man’s risk of developing prostate cancer, other factors also play a role. They include:
· Race or ethnicity –African American and Caribbean men have a higher risk of prostate cancer than men of other races and are twice as likely to die of the disease. Non-Hispanic white men have a slightly less risk, followed by Asian-American and Hispanic men who have the lowest risk within this factor.
· Geographic Location – Prostate cancer occurs more commonly in North America, northwestern Europe, Australia, and the Caribbean than in Asia, Africa, Central and South America.
· Diet – An individual’s diet is a factor in determining risk of prostate cancer. Some studies suggest that eating a lot of red meat and high-fat dairy products or not eating enough fruits and vegetables increases the risk of developing prostate cancer.
· Weight – While being obese doesn’t increase overall risk for prostate cancer, some research suggests that obesity puts men at a greater risk of a more aggressive form of the disease once it develops, making it more difficult to treat after diagnosis.
Prostate cancer is traditionally treated with a combination of treatments such as surgery, chemotherapy and radiation therapy. Medical and technological advancements have paved the way to treat this disease with newer and improved methods. One example is the CyberKnife® system, a noninvasive and pain-free way to treat prostate cancer.
The CyberKnife Center of Miami routinely treats men with prostate cancer with the CyberKnife® system. CyberKnife is a safe, comfortable and effective treatment method that greatly reduces the risk a lot of the side effects from other treatment methods. To learn more, contact the CyberKnife Center of Miami today by calling (305) 279-2900. Or, to schedule a consultation, simply fill out our convenient online appointment request form and visit our website www.prostatecancertreatmentmiami.com