The Most Common Prostate Cancer Myths, Debunked by Doctors and What Men Should Know

From charlotteobserver.com

Prostate cancer myths are keeping men out of screening rooms at exactly the wrong time. Doctors say the beliefs sound reasonable, whether it is “I feel fine,” “I’m too young” or “a high test result means the worst.” Each one carries a real cost when it delays a diagnosis that early detection could catch. 

The disease is one of the most common cancers in American men, and it rarely announces itself. That is why urologists keep pushing back against the same misconceptions, from age cut-offs to assumptions about treatment side effects. Here is what they want patients to hear.

Why silence is the biggest warning sign 

Prostate cancer typically produces no symptoms in its early, most treatable stage. Men who wait for pain, urinary trouble or blood in the urine before considering screening are often waiting too long.

 “These kinds of myths are very concerning because somebody may not have any of those symptoms, and then they think, ‘Oh, I’m fine. I don’t need to worry about prostate cancer. I don’t have bone pain. I don’t have blood in the urine.’ But that’s not the case at all. The whole case is that prostate cancer doesn’t have any symptoms at an early stage, and that’s why screening is so important,” Dr. Stacy Loeb, a professor of medicine and population health at NYU Grossman School of Medicine and a urologic oncologist at NYU Langone Medical Center, told Urology Times.

The myth that only older men get it 

Think you know prostate cancer? Urologists explain which common myths are actually wrong. JULIAN STRATENSCHULTE POOL/AFP via Getty Images

Prostate cancer becomes more common with age, but calling it a disease of the elderly is misleading. Recent national data show about 1 in 20 new cases are diagnosed in men in their 40s and early 50s, with the rate climbing sharply each decade after.

“We still see too many men in their forties or early fifties who were told they were ‘too young to worry.’ By the time their cancer is detected, it’s sometimes already advanced, and that’s something we can often prevent through early screening,” Dr. Justin Lee, a urologic surgeon with the same practice, told Urology Partners.

What a high PSA actually means 

An abnormal PSA result rattles patients, but a raised number is not a diagnosis. Enlarged prostates, infections and even recent physical or sexual activity can push PSA levels up, according to Dr. Brian Sperling, a urologist at Hunterdon Urological Associates. 

If PSA climbs above 4 nanograms per millilitre or rises faster than expected, a primary care doctor may refer the patient to a urologist. That specialist may order an MRI to investigate the spike, and only if cancer still appears likely does a biopsy come next. Sperling shared the workflow with Hunterdon Health.

Why “incurable” is outdated 

Many prostate cancers are highly curable when caught early, and some low-grade cases never require treatment at all. Doctors often monitor slow-moving tumours that are neither spreading nor causing symptoms, sparing patients unnecessary surgery or radiation.

For cancers that do require treatment, outcomes are strong when the disease stays localized. Nearly all men whose cancer is confined in or around the prostate are still alive five years after diagnosis, according to the American Cancer Society. 

Treatment does not automatically mean impotence 

Erectile dysfunction remains a real possibility after prostate cancer treatment, but the risk is no longer what it was a generation ago. Nerve-sparing radical prostatectomy is less invasive than traditional surgery and preserves some or all of the nerve structures that control erectile function, Sperling said. That approach lowers the risk of post-surgical impotence and improves the odds of regaining function within two years after surgery. Some radiation therapies also carry a lower risk than others.

Loeb tells patients to arm themselves with vetted information before making a decision. “What I recommend is an ‘information prescription.’ Our job is not just to prescribe drugs or surgical procedures, but also to be directive and to give our patients recommended sources for additional information, so that they are not left to this online Wild West that is out there,” she told Urology Times.

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