UPDATE - Issue 1 - September 1998
Majority of problems are benign
Our charts shows that although the likelihood of getting a prostate problem increases rapidly with age, more than 80% of prostate problems are non cancerous.
The majority of men with prostate problems have enlargement of the prostate which constricts the urethra which passes through it and thereby produces the well known problems of having to get up in the night, of urgency, frequency, hesitancy and intermittency. This benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) is not cancerous and not life threatening. It is, however, a damned nuisance.
So what can be done for people with BPH (Benign Prostatic Hyperplasia)? Quite a bit either with surgery or through the use of drugs.
The standard surgical technique involves 'reaming' out unwanted tissue using an instrument which is passed through the opening at the end of the penis and along the urethra. A less invasive treatment called Thermex, burns off some of the unwanted cells rather than cut them away surgically.
These days, many GPs see the medical management of the BPH as an option in its own right, rather than a stop gap measure for men waiting for the operation. There are two classes of drug for those with only moderate symptoms - Alpha blockers and 5-alpha reductase inhibitors - and they work in quite different ways. Alpha blockers work by relaxing the smooth muscle in the prostate thereby relieving the pressure on the urethra. They do not affect the enlargement process but they do often relieve the symptoms very significantly.
The second group, the 5-alpha reductase inhibitors carry out their work by blocking the production of the main hormone responsible for prostate enlargement.
Herbal and non prescription remedies are also worthy of consideration. Almost 50 years ago, it was discovered that prostate enlargement is almost non existent in Transylvania a phenomenon which has been attributed to the high intake of zinc in that country through the consumption of pumpkin seeds.
So, if all else fails...!