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Testing for Problems in the Prostate

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One of the keys to maintaining a healthy prostate is to check for problems regularly. Once men reach the age of 50, they should have their physician perform rectal exams during their regular physical examinations. During the rectal exam, the gloved physician presses on the walls of the rectum to feel the peripheral zone of the prostate. The physician can measure the size of the prostate and check for any abnormalities or even cancerous tumors. Urine tests can also be performed during the annual wellness exam which can show traces of blood or infection when examined under the microscope.

Prostate Specific Antigen (PSA) is a protein that is made in the prostate and leaks into the blood continuously. The levels of PSA increase when abnormalities arise and can be detected through a PSA blood test. If cancer is present in the prostate, the PSA levels will be higher than normal. However, increased levels of PSA in the blood do not mean that the problem present is necessarily cancer. It could just be a sign of an enlarged prostate. Like the physical exam, the PSA blood test should be performed annually once a male reaches the age of 50. If you have family members with a history of prostate problems or if you are African-American, you should start to have annual PSA blood tests once you turn 40.

If cancer is suspected, a biopsy can be performed by extracting tissue through a large, hollow needle that can be tested for cancerous cells.

There are a few different tests that can be performed to detect BPH, or an enlarged prostate. Intravenous Pyelograms (IVP) is an X-ray test taken after the patient receives a dye injected into their vein. Then, pictures are taken of the kidneys, bladder and ureter tubes that drain the urine.

A bladder ultrasound is a less invasive way to see how much urine is left after emptying your bladder. If a large amount is left, this could mean that an enlarged prostate is preventing the urine from traveling through the urethra. If the physician feels it necessary, a transrectal ultrasound can be performed to look for gland enlargement, nodules, penetration of a tumor through capsule of the gland or seminal vesicles. Prostate ultrasounds can also be performed to estimate the volume of the prostate gland.

A cytoscopy is a direct visual exam of the bladder and prostate that involves a thin, lighted instrument that a physician looks through as it passes through the urethra and into the bladder.

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