The prostate is a small gland shaped like a walnut. Cancer growth in the area is called prostate cancer and primarily affects men as they advance in age.

Oftentimes, prostate cancer symptoms do not manifest until it is large enough to put some pressure on the tube carrying urine from the bladder to the urethra or penis. At this stage, patients may experience some changes in their bladder and how they pee.

Changes in Bladder Habits

According to Macmillan Cancer Support, one of the biggest charitable organization and health care provider in the UK, those suffering from prostate cancer may have these symptoms:

  • Experience some difficulty in peeing, like, for instance, having a weak flow or the need to strain to begin urinating.
  • There is a need to urinate more often than normal, particularly during nighttime.
  • Feeling like the bladder was not completely emptied after urinating.
  • There is a pressing need to urinate.
  • Persons who suffer from prostate cancer would occasionally feel pain when urinating or ejaculating
  • There is the presence of blood in urine or semen.
beware of symptoms of prostate cancer when you pee
beware of symptoms of prostate cancer when you pee JetCarson - Pixabay

These symptoms, as the NHS states, are not always indicative of prostate cancer since this gland can get larger as age advances due to a non-cancerous disorder called prostate enlargement. The symptoms that indicate cancer in the prostate may have already spread include loss of appetite, unexplained weight loss, bone and back pain, as well as pain in the testicles.

In the case of bone and back pain due to the spread of cancer, this condition is known as secondary bone cancer. This is what doctors use to describe the form of cancer, which spreads from one area of the body to the bones. Macmillan UK stated that one of the signs that cancer in the prostate has spread to the bones is feeling pain in the back or the hips.

Reducing Risk of Prostate Cancer

While there are no proven methods on how to prevent the development of prostate cancer, studies have shown that making some changes in lifestyle may reduce the risk. The key to it all is having a regular healthy diet.

Researchers have established the link between consuming certain types of food and a reduction in the risk of prostate cancer development. According to their findings, which were published in the International Journal of Cancer, adding mushrooms to the regular diet may lower the risk of this type of cancer.

The study, which was conducted on living organisms, shows mushrooms can prevent prostate cancer. Researchers admitted, however, that they have not reached the point yet where they could say the same holds true for cancer-afflicted individuals who consume mushrooms.

For now, researchers are content in saying that mushrooms are a good source of minerals, vitamins, and anti-oxidants, particularly L-ergothioneine. This anti-oxidant is largely seen by scientists as very effective in mitigating oxidative stress, which can reduce chronic inflammation that causes diseases like cancer.