Noted Santa Rosa Urologist Dr. Michael Lazar Provides Insights on Prostate Cancer Treatments in Recognition of Prostate Cancer Awareness Month
Santa Rosa, CA (PRWEB) September 03, 2015 -- About 220,800 new cases of prostate cancer are reported each year, along with 27,540 deaths attributed to the disease annually. One in seven men will be diagnosed with prostate cancer during their lifetime. While only one man in 10,000 will typically get prostate cancer under age 40, the risk increases to six of every 10 men by age 65, according to the American Cancer Society.
Prostate cancer is the second leading cause of death following lung cancer, and about one man in 38 will die of the disease. However, statistics show that most men diagnosed with the prostate cancer do not die from it, and more than 2.9 million men in the U.S. who were found to have this cancer are alive today. But why take a chance? A simple screening involving an annual blood test to measure PSA levels gives doctors a way to assess the presence and pace of the disease and the need for ongoing monitoring, a biopsy or direct intervention.
“Why is there such a difference between cancers? Some prostate cancer is very aggressive and progresses quickly, while other forms take many years to become life threatening,” said Dr. Michael Lazar, a noted urologist with a practice in Santa Rosa, California and a leading proponent of non-invasive High Intensity Focused Ultrasound (HIFU) therapy for prostate cancer treatment.
You have a number of options if it is determined that you have this disease. These include traditional surgery to remove the prostate gland, radiation (including inserting irradiated pellets into the prostate), cryotherapy (freezing of the prostate), or non-invasive HIFU therapy using sound waves to pinpoint cancer cells and destroy them without damage to surrounding healthy tissue and minimal blood loss.
Side-effects associated with invasive surgical procedures include a hospital stay, a longer recovery period plus scarring, adhesions and blood loss. There is also the risk of incontinence, erectile dysfunction (ED) and a decline of libido. Radiation can ionize otherwise healthy cells that can turn into cancer latter in life. With cryotherapy, side effects include 90% to 100% ED and urethral tissue scaring that can obstruct voiding. The HIFU procedure is virtually painless, takes only a few hours, and there are fewer side-effects, thereby maintaining the quality of life. Most patients are up and around the same day.
In most instances, there are no significant symptoms during the early stages of prostate cancer, and symptoms may vary from one man to another, or can be caused by other conditions. However, there are some urinary symptoms that could signal cancer including: pain or a burning sensation while urinating as well as difficulty in starting or stopping, frequent urges to go during the night, an uncontrollable bladder, a decreased flow of the urine stream, or blood in the urine. Other symptoms include painful ejaculation or difficulty in getting an erection, swelling in the legs or pelvic area, pain or numbness in the feet, legs or hips, constant bone pain leading to fractures and blood in the semen.
“My advice to every man is to obtain a baseline PSA after age 40, then yearly exams and PSA tests after 50 years of age. For those having to make a treatment choice for prostate cancer, consider all options including HIFU. While not currently available in the U.S., HIFU is pending FDA approval and is available internationally at a full-service hospital in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, where dozens of successful HIFU procedures have been performed by me and my highly trained team,” Dr. Lazar said.
For additional information, go to the website at http://www.californiahifu.com, or contact Dr. Michael Lazar’s office at (707) 546-5553. His office is located at 1140 Sonoma Ave #1A, Santa Rosa, CA 95405.
John Beilharz, JB Communications, http://jbadvertising.com/, +1 (707) 579-4977, [email protected]
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