Nearly 192,000 men will be diagnosed with prostate cancer this year. Early detection is absolutely the key to survival.
"The main risk factor for prostate cancer is genetics," says Dr. Sanford J. Siegel, member of Board of the Urology Care Foundation. "If you have a family history, you have a higher incidence of getting prostate cancer yourself."
If a patient has a family history of prostate cancer, their odds of being diagnosed with the disease soar to one in five.
Risk factors for prostate cancer also include age and race. About one out of every nine men in the United States will be told they have prostate cancer during their lifetime. Most of those are over the age of 65. African Americans have a one in six chance of being diagnosed with the disease.
The American Urological Association recommends men ages 55 to 69, talk to their health care provider about whether prostate cancer testing is right for them. Men at a “higher risk” for developing the disease, should consider talking to a health care provider as early as 40-54 years of age about the benefits and risks of testing.
"Men do not have to die unnecessarily from this disease," says Dr. Siegel, also a prostate cancer survivor. "29,000 men will die of prostate cancer (this year). That is a ridiculous number!
"Why not get screened early? If you're found early you can be cured of this disease. You do not have to die unnecessarily from prostate cancer, if its found early enough in its course."