How do I protect myself from prostate cancer, but avoid unneeded treatment?

If you have risk factors for prostate cancer, you should get screened early; but all men should get regular prostate check-ups. Watch urologist Harry Fisch, MD, explain how men can protect themselves from prostate cancer and avoid unneeded treatment.

Transcript

00:00

If one of your family members died of prostate cancer-- that is, your brother or your father-- you must get checked early.

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Prostate cancer is one of the most common men's cancers that exist. In fact, it's very similar to breast cancer.

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And while we know about breast cancer because we see all the different groups advocating for awareness, we don't see too much of that for men.

00:28

So one of the things that's very important to know is, are you at risk of getting prostate cancer? Well, if one of your family members

00:34

died of prostate cancer-- that is, your brother or your father-- you must get checked early. Also, if you're an African-American male,

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it turns out that prostate cancer in African-American males can be more serious and more of a consequence and lead to more aggressive forms

00:50

of prostate cancer. So there are certain risk factors for prostate cancer, and you have to be aware of that. But in general, you need to go see a doctor

00:58

and ask to make sure that they examine your prostate. A lot of doctors forget to do that. You cannot forget to get a rectal exam,

01:06

which is a simple five-second test to evaluate whether the prostate has any lumps or bumps that may be suspicious

01:13

for prostate cancer. Then the other thing is we do have a test called the PSA test, Prostate-Specific Antigen. That's

01:20

something that is controversial and we're not sure is the perfect sort of test for prostate cancer.

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But talk to your doctor about getting that test. Certainly, if you are at high risk of getting prostate cancer, I do recommend the PSA test

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early on. But please talk to your doctor about it, whether it's appropriate for you. [AUDIO LOGO]