Prostate cancer is a serious disease that affects thousands of men each year who are middle-aged or older. About 60 percent of the cases occur in men older than age 65. The American Cancer Society (ACS) estimates that 174,650 American men will be newly diagnosed with this condition in 2019.
The prostate is a small gland found in a man’s lower abdomen. It’s located under the bladder and surrounding the urethra. The prostate is regulated by the hormone testosterone and produces seminal fluid, also known as semen. Semen is the substance containing sperm that exits the urethra during ejaculation.
When an abnormal, malignant growth of cells — which is called a tumor — forms in the prostate, it’s called prostate cancer. This cancer can spread to other areas of the body. In these cases, because the cancer is made of cells from the prostate, it’s still called prostate cancer.
According to the Urology Care Foundation, prostate cancer is the second-leading cause of cancer deaths for men in the United States.
Most cases of prostate cancer are a type of cancer called an adenocarcinoma. This is a cancer that grows in the tissue of a gland, such as the prostate gland.
Prostate cancer is also categorized by how fast it grows. It has two types of growths:
- aggressive, or fast growing
- nonaggressive, or slow growing
With nonaggressive prostate cancer, the tumor either doesn’t grow or grows very little over time. With aggressive prostate cancer, the tumor can grow quickly and may spread to other areas of the body, such as the bones.
There’s no known cause for prostate cancer. Like all cancers, it could be caused by many things, including a family history or exposure to certain chemicals.
Whatever the instigating factor is, it leads to cell mutations and uncontrolled cell growth in the prostate.
Who’s at risk?
While prostate cancer could occur in any man, certain factors raise your risk for the disease. These risk factors include:
- older age
- a family history of prostate cancer
- certain ethnicities or race — for instance, African American males are at greater risk of having prostate cancer
- obesity
- genetic changes
Where you live could also play a role in your prostate cancer risk. Find out more about causes and risk factors for prostate cancer.
