Issue #84
September 2008

• Prostate Cancer
• Major Health Hazard
• What's killing Australia's
  Plumbers?
• Take Heart
• Getting to Know You
• In Brief
• A depressing fact about
  depression
• Did you know
• All Gut and Know Glory?
• Product Profile:
  Blundstone 172 Safety Boot
• Life Saving Jocks
• Expanding the Network
• Price Changes

Prostate Cancer Statistics

Would you bet your life on not getting prostate cancer?

Here are the odds:

• For a man in his 40s - 1 in 1000
• For a man in his 50s - 12 in 1000
• For a man in his 60s - 45 in 1000
• For a man in his 70s - 80 in 1000

*Based on the number of men tested.

Prostate Cancer

Have you had your own plumbing
checked lately?

September is Prostate Cancer Awareness month, a good time to think about cancer in a place where you’d probably rather not think about getting cancer. The prostate.

It’s part of the male reproductive system, and produces the fluid which carries sperm. It surrounds the tube that takes urine from the bladder to the penis. The nerves that control erections surround it. So you can see, it’s a (shall we say) sensitive spot.

Around 18,700 Australian men are diagnosed with prostate cancer in Australia every year (Sam Newman, Alan Jones and Dr Harry among them). Nearly 3,000 die from the disease. It’s most common in men over 50, although younger men 40+ with a history of prostate cancer in their family are at greater risk.

The good news is that it can be cured if it’s detected and treated while still confined to the prostate gland. So it’s important to talk to your doctor as soon as you think you might be at risk.

Here are the symptoms to look out for:

• Waking frequently at night to urinate
• Sudden or urgent need to urinate
• Difficulty in starting to urinate
• Slow flow of urine and difficulty in stopping
• Discomfort when urinating
• Painful ejaculation
• Blood in the urine or semen
• Decrease in sex drive
• Reduced ability to get an erection

These symptoms may not necessarily mean you have prostate cancer, as they’re also signs of other prostate conditions. Even so, if you have them you should get checked by your GP.

Some men worry about the tests involved. (How well do any of us want to know our doctors?) However the tests used differ according to your risk level. Initially it may just be a blood test, not necessarily an internal examination.