Featured In: The Coalville Times, Friday, 11th November 2022

HEALTH MATTERS WITH DR NIC RUSHMAN

Movember – Men’s Health Month: Prostate Cancer

• The prostate gland sits in the base of your belly behind your bladder
• It’s the size of a walnut
• It’s like a doughnut around your urethra – the pipe that carries your wee to the outside world
• So if the prostate gets bigger, it can press on this tube
• This can cause havoc with your waterworks

So prostate problems can cause:

• Waking up at night to wee
• Having to dash to the loo
• Difficulty getting the stream to start or stop
• Passing blood
• Problems with erections

It is normal for the prostate gland to gradually get bigger, especially into your 60s and beyond, so a lot of men have these waterwork issues. It is always worth speaking with your GP about surgery, to rule out other causes, and because some- times medication helps.

So if these are often normal signs, how do we know when it could be something more serious, like prostate cancer? Some men have a higher risk:

• Men who are black
• Men who have a family history of prostate cancer

Prostate cancer is often a slow grow- ing cancer that only needs to be monitored, but sometimes treatment is needed. So what do you need to do?

• Go to your GP surgery or book an online consultation