Aside from giving men an excuse to annually indulge their inner Tom Sellecks (read: moustaches), November (or “Movember,” as it’s been dubbed by the fundraising campaign to “impact men’s health”) exists to remind us of something much more sobering. Here, Dr. Edmonds offers a primer on the disease that’s taking more men’s lives than car accidents each year and gives us new hope for getting that much closer to a cure.

For those who are unaware, what exactly is the prostate?
The prostate is a part of the male reproductive system. It adds nutrients and fluid to sperm. Normally the size of a walnut, the prostate can be divided into right and left “lobes.” It is located in front of the rectum, just below the bladder. It surrounds the urethra, the tube that carries urine and semen through the penis.

And how does cancer typically spread to it (or develop)?
Prostate cancer is a disease where some prostate cells have lost normal control of growth and division. They no longer function as healthy cells. A cancerous prostate cell has the following features: uncontrolled growth, abnormal structure, the ability to move to other parts of the body (invasiveness). 

I’ve heard it’s common. True?
One in seven men will be diagnosed with prostate cancer in their lifetime. It is also the most common cancer to be diagnosed in Canadian men — an estimated 25 per cent of all new cancer cases in men are prostate cancer.

When should men get tested for this?
We recommend that men get a baseline test for prostate specific antigen (or PSA) for prostate cancer in their 40s. If they are at high risk, they should talk to their doctor earlier about prostate cancer. The decision to end PSA testing should be based on individual risk, rather than an arbitrary cut-off, such as age 70, and should be a shared decision determined by a man and his primary care provider.

Signs and symptoms?
[Things such as] difficulty urinating, an urgent need to urinate, frequent urination (especially at night), burning or pain when urinating, an inability to urinate or difficulty starting or stopping urine flow.

Why did Prostate Cancer Canada feel a need to release new recommendations, in September, on when to be checked for this?
Prostate Cancer Canada’s recommendations will help to relieve confusion, uncertainty and fear among Canadian men. An online poll conducted for Prostate Cancer Canada among men aged 18+ found over half (55 per cent) either didn’t know or underestimated a man’s lifetime risk of developing prostate cancer. Only 16 per cent of respondents were able to identify correctly that a man’s lifetime risk of prostate cancer is one in seven. Given those stats, we felt that the time had come to provide clarity and a definitive stance.

Have there been any advancements in researching/treating this?
There have been a number of significant positive advances in the diagnosis and treatment of prostate
cancer. The use of brachytherapy (a method by which radiation is delivered internally) is a significant new treatment option that is gaining popularity. [There’s] robot-assisted surgery, which is similar to laparoscopic surgery, except that the video camera and instruments are connected to a robotic system that is controlled by the surgeon. Chemotherapy is providing options for patients with late-stage cancer, as it is used to slow the prostate cancer’s spread, prolong life and relieve pain. Finally, imaging techniques (such as MRI) are offering improved outcomes and precision in both diagnosis and treatments such as radiation therapy.

Are you currently rocking a moustache?
Absolutely. Movember is our biggest donor, and we appreciate that we’ve been entrusted with a very special mission — to allocate funds raised by Canadians to create programs that support research that will have the greatest potential to improve prostate cancer prevention, diagnosis and treatment and to better manage survivorship. This is in addition to raising awareness and educating people about prostate cancer. So for the month of Movember, I will be sporting a mo — and I encourage others to do the same or support those that do.