Locally advanced prostate cancer is cancer that has grown through
the outer wall of the prostate gland and into neighboring tissue. Locally
advanced prostate cancer has not spread into lymph nodes or to other
organs.
Experts do not know the exact cause of prostate cancer, but they
believe that factors such as age and family history increase a man's risk of
developing the disease. Prostate cancer usually is a disease of older
men.
Prostate cancer may not cause symptoms. Possible symptoms of
locally advanced prostate cancer are:
- Waking frequently at night to
urinate.
- Difficulty or pain during urination.
- Blood in
the urine or semen.
- Deep pain or stiffness in the lower back, upper
thighs, or hips.
Locally advanced prostate cancer is diagnosed through physical
exams and tests, including a digital rectal exam, a prostate-specific antigen
(PSA) test, and a biopsy.
Locally advanced prostate cancer may be treated with radiation
therapy, surgery to remove the prostate (prostatectomy), hormone therapy, or
surgery to relieve symptoms (transurethral resection of the prostate).