Staff Wellbeing: March is Prostate Cancer Awareness Month

March is prostate cancer awareness month. In the UK, about 48,600 men are diagnosed with it each year. If you are a trans woman or are non-binary assigned male at birth, you also need to be aware of prostate cancer and its effects.

What is Prostate Cancer?

Prostate cancer is a common cancer and starts in the cells of the prostate. The prostate is a small gland that is just below the bladder and in front of the rectum (back passage).

Symptoms of Prostate Cancer

You may not experience any symptoms in the early stage of prostate cancer. It is only when the cancer is large enough to press on the tube that carries the urine from the bladder (urethra) that symptoms can occur.

These can include:

Needing to pee more often than usual, especially at night
Difficulty peeing – for example, a weak flow or having to strain to start peeing
Feeling like you have not completely emptied your bladder

Sometimes the symptoms of benign (non-cancerous) prostate conditions and prostate cancer are similar. If you have any prostate cancer symptoms, it is important to have them checked by your GP. Try not to be embarrassed – doctors deal with this all the time. Your GP can do tests to find out if you need a referral to a specialist doctor.

Further Information and Support

Macmillan Cancer Support have a dedicated webpage on prostate cancer with lots of information including more detailed information on symptoms, risk factors, diagnostic tests used and treatment options. You can also call the Macmillan Support Line on 0808 808 00 00.

Prostate Cancer UK, a charity dedicated to raising awareness and funding research into prostate cancer have a wealth of information and support on their website. You can also call their specialist nurses on 0800 074 8383.