The British King Charles III. have to go to the hospital. He will be treated for an enlarged prostate next week, the PA news agency reported on Wednesday, citing Buckingham Palace.
Enlarged prostate may or may not be a sign of cancer
The prostate lies beneath the urinary bladder and is involved in the production of sperm. If the organ changes shape, it can press on the bladder and cause discomfort when going to the toilet. An enlarged prostate can be a sign of cancer, but in most cases it has a harmless cause.
Nevertheless, even if the enlargement is benign, treatment with medication or surgery may be necessary. If you have certain complaints, men should speak to a doctor to prevent a long period of suffering. The following test gives a rough assessment of the condition of your prostate.
Info: The test is partly based on the prostate check from the Munich Clinic. This is an abbreviated version of the test. Here you can interactively click through the full test to get the best possible assessment of your personal risk from the experts at the Munich Clinic. The test does not replace a diagnosis from a doctor.
Prostate self-test: answer 9 questions!
That’s how it’s done: For each of the nine questions, write down one of the following four answer options: never, rarely, often, (almost) always. The questions refer to the period of the last four weeks.
Didn’t your bladder feel completely empty after urinating? Have you had to urinate several times within two hours? Did you have to stop and start urinating? Did you have a strong urge to urinate and difficulty holding urine? Did you have a weak stream when urinating? Have you had difficulty starting to urinate? Did you have to go to the toilet at night? Did urine drip from the urethra after going to the toilet? Did it take an unusually long time to urinate?
Resolution: Do you have most of the questions? “never” or “rarely” answered, your risk of an enlarged prostate or another prostate disease is rather low. Nevertheless, experts recommend that even symptom-free men aged 45 and over undergo a preventive examination. Because the problems caused by a tumor or inflammation of the prostate are so non-specific, a disease is often only discovered during such an examination.
The more questions you ask “often” or “(almost) always” answered, the higher your risk of developing the disease. Then speak to a doctor as soon as possible about the result. He can get to the bottom of the causes and recommend a suitable treatment method.
Warning signs: If you have these signs, you should have your prostate examined
The nine questions of the prostate self-test focus on urinary problems. But other symptoms can also indicate an enlarged or inflamed prostate. Also seek your doctor’s opinion if you have any of the following symptoms:
Blood or discoloration in the urine: Blood, noticeably discolored urine or discolored semen can be a warning signal for various illnesses. They can indicate inflammation or infection, but also a tumor.
Problems during sexual intercourse: If the shape of the prostate changes, this can also happen Sexual intercourse becomes noticeable, for example in the form of erectile dysfunction, pain during erection or pain during sexual intercourse.