Dr Lomesh Kapadnis is a Urosurgeon and is regarded as the best urologist in Nashik. He completed his MBBS from the prestigious Grant Medical College & Sir J. J. Hospital, Mumbai in 2007. He later pursued an MS in General Surgery from Grant Medical College. He secured the 11th rank in Maharashtra Superspeciality Entrance Exam. He later completed M.Ch. in Urology in 2016. He is currently associated with Siddhidata Urology And Maternity Clinic.

Signs of Prostate Cancer

Dr Kapadnis begins, "There are no separate signs of Prostrate in men. There are irritative symptoms like nocturia. As the size of the prostate increase,s it leads to frequent urination at night. If the patient has a urine sensation then they would have to immediately use the bathroom. Other signs are that they would have to use the bathroom every 2 hours, have a diminished size of urine flow, straining while urinating and sensation of incomplete urination. These symptoms are seen even in non-cancerous prostate or benign prostate enlargement."

"As the size of the prostate increases and the enlargement is seen, they can even experience loss of blood. If prostate cancer spreads to bones and others, it can lead to loss of weight, loss of appetite and swollen feet. If it reaches the bones then it increases the risk of bone fractures. These are the signs of advanced prostate cancer. The above-mentioned symptoms in paragraph one don't mean one has prostate cancer. Get your checkup and screening done to arrive at the right conclusion."

When and How does this spread?

Dr Kapadnis explains, "Cancer is an uncontrolled growth of cells. This growth of cancerous cells after a point enters the bloodstream, lymphatics or spread locally. This is when we can say that cancer has spread. In stages 1 and 2, the tumours are restricted locally. When it starts affecting the other organs then we say it is a locally advanced or stage 3 cancer."

"This could affect the bladder and uterus. When this spreads to the bones and lymphatics, then we get lymph nodes enlargements and other symptoms can be observed."

Survival rate after cancer spreads to other organs

Dr Kapadnis says, "In every cancer, we provide survival rate in terms of survival for 1 year or 10 years. We also check the percentage of their survival compared to non-cancerous people of that same age. Local prostate cancer of stages 1 and 2 has a survival rate of 5 years with proper treatment."

"Prostate cancer is a slow-growing cancer. With good treatment, one can see good survival rates. If treatment is not administered or cancer is no more local then their survival gets drastically reduced. Here the survival rate after 5 years is 30%

Where does it spread first?

Dr Kapadnis mentions, "Prostrate Cancer first spreads to the nearby organs like bladder, uterus and others. It later advances to bones the most. Later it reaches lymph nodes, lungs and liver. In bones, it affects the pelvic bones and vertebral column. Once it affects vertebral column it can cause fractures, paralysis and more."

Hormone Therapy for Prostate Cancer

He explains, "Prostrate Cancer is a type of cancer where the spread is dependent on the hormone. The male hormone testosterone aids its spread. With hormonal therapy, we try and suppress this hormone. This can be done either surgically or medically. One can perform castration which is irreversible or we try Hormonal Therapy that reduces the level of testosterone in the body.”

(Edited by Priyal Shah)