Prostate cancer is one of the most curable. According to the National Cancer Institute, the chances of surviving prostate cancer are 93%. However, the organization still recorded 8,100 deaths in 2018 and 50,400 new cases in the same year.
Two associations, l’ANAMACaP (National Association of Prostate Cancer Patients) and le FDCP (Endowment Fund for Innovation in the Management of Prostate Cancer), provide information on the benefits of early detection, which they believe would limit the risk of death.
ANAMACaP’s mission is to provide information on prostate cancer and to support patients and their families. The FDCP aims to accelerate access to diagnostic and therapeutic innovation for the benefit of patients.
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Two screening methods
There are two screening methods. There are two possibilities to detect prostate cancer: a palpation of the prostate to check its volume, consistency or texture and a PSA (prostate-specific antigen) assay, which aims to measure the level of PSA in the blood using to a conventional blood test.
Health authorities do not recommend routine PSA screening for men without symptoms. Claude Oustlant, president of the FDCP and member-administrator of ANAMACaP, regrets this: “PSA screening, which does not detect cancer as such, gives indications of the possibility of illness and requires additional examinations if necessary. These examinations make it possible to assess the degree of seriousness of a possible pathology.
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Screening to curb the disease
Claude Oustlant is campaigning for this screening to be organized by the public authorities from the age of 50, in the same way as screening for breast and lung cancer: “Not doing screening is a loss of chance of surviving to cancer. If screening is too late, it causes metastases in the body which can affect the bones, the spine or the lungs. If we detect early, the chances of survival are greater, ”he says.
There are symptoms that should alert to a possible prostate disorder: “This can be at the level of urination, with the need to urinate more often or incontinence”, specifies Claude Oustlant. Even if these signs are not necessarily indicative of cancer, they should however encourage you to consult a doctor.
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Improving support
For the president of the FDCP, it is important to consult two different doctors, because “it is important to have two opinions to find the right solution”, he explains. Because to treat this disease, several possibilities exist: prostatectomy or removal of the prostate and vesicles, chemotherapy or radiotherapy.
On this point, Claude Oustlant explains that early detection allows better treatment of the disease and avoids long therapy sessions: “Sometimes it is better to have active monitoring, to follow the patient attentively to see if there is an evolution of the situation thereafter. »
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