Prostate Cancer Causes And Treatment Health And Social Care Essay

This paper will look into several different academic diary articles and some popular media articles that are about prostatic malignant neoplastic disease. These articles discuss prostate malignant neoplastic disease causes, ( conjectural and known ) , sensing methods, and intervention options. A twosome of the articles besides focus on the cost of intervention for patients, every bit good as the hazards involved with the differing methods of intervention. Several intervention options for prostate malignant neoplastic disease are still being studied. This essay will critically analyse and compare prostatic malignant neoplastic disease sensing methods, ( such as Prostate-specific antigen or ( PSA ) trials ) intervention options, and the differing success or failure of each method, every bit good as concentrating on the increasing cost of intervention that patients are forced to pay. Some of the articles besides suggest that more resources and more instruction are needed to assist take down the mortality rate from prostate malignant neoplastic disease. This paper will research what is being done to assist take down the mortality rate every bit good as what is being done to assist increase the rate of early sensing of prostate malignant neoplastic disease. Keywords: Prostate-specific antigen Prostate Cancer: Causes and Treatment Options Available in Today ‘s Scientifically Advanced Society Harmonizing to the Prostate Cancer Foundation, prostate malignant neoplastic disease occurs when cells within the prostate grow uncontrollably, making little tumours. The term â€Å" malignant neoplastic disease † refers to a status in which the ordinance of cell growing is lost and cells grow uncontrollably. Prostate malignant neoplastic disease is a disease of epidemic proportions. 1 in 6 American work forces will be diagnosed with prostate malignant neoplastic disease and new instances are diagnosed every 2.7 proceedingss ( Charles 2009 ) . As prostatic malignant neoplastic disease airss such a menace to work forces worldwide, more clip and money should be spent to better upon the bing methods and engineering every bit good as invested towards instruction and consciousness plans. The fact that these statistics are existent is why prostatic malignant neoplastic disease consciousness and instruction is so indispensable because many deceases could hold been prevented if the in stances had been detected at earlier phases of the malignant neoplastic disease. Prostate malignant neoplastic disease ‘s specific cause is still unknown, nevertheless scientists hypothesize that cistrons play a function, because the hazard factor for acquiring prostatic malignant neoplastic disease is well higher if you have a household history of it. The two chief methods used for prostate malignant neoplastic disease testing are rectal scrutinies and prostate-specific antigen ( PSA ) blood proving. Rathus, Nevid, and Rathus ( 2008 ) remind work forces 50 old ages and older that the American Cancer Society recommends that work forces receive one-year rectal scrutinies and PSA blood trials. Treatment methods for prostate malignant neoplastic disease are limited, but new engineering has allowed for a higher endurance rate because of early sensing. The first point of involvement is that the costs of prostatic malignant neoplastic disease intervention have gone up well in the last 20 old ages harmonizing to USA Today reporter Lisa Szabo. In her article entitled â€Å" Patients bear brunt as malignant neoplastic disease disbursement hits $ 90 billion † she discusses how â€Å" these lifting costs have been driven by forces such as new drugs, robotic surgeries, and radiation techniques † ( 2010 ) . In her findings she discovered that from 1991 to 2002 the cost of intervention for malignant neoplastic disease doubled. â€Å" These additions are unsustainable † claims John Seffrin, CEO of the American Cancer Society. Because of the increasing costs of intervention the American Cancer society can merely assist 1 out of 6 patients as opposed to in the yesteryear when they were able to assist 1 in 5. When one takes into history how many malignant neoplastic disease patients are in the United States, so they can rec ognize how many people are waiving intervention because they are uninsured and can non afford intervention. It is tragic that the rise costs are ensuing in preventable deceases. In another article reviewed, Krahn, Zagorski, Laporte, Alibhai, Bremner, Tomlinson, Warde, and Naglie, ( 2009 ) set out to detect health care costs in relation to prostate malignant neoplastic disease. They researched direct medical costs for around 42,000 work forces over the patterned advance of the disease. The costs they found were between $ 2,000 to around $ 16,000 dependant on where the single patient was in the intervention procedure and how advanced their malignant neoplastic disease was. The ensuing decision was that prostatic malignant neoplastic disease costs â€Å" are highest around two events, malignant neoplastic disease diagnosing and malignant neoplastic disease decease † ( Krahn et Al ‘s. 2009 ) . The 2nd point of involvement is that drug company Roche ‘s â€Å" Avastin † a prostatic malignant neoplastic disease drug late hit headlines and non in a good manner. Harmonizing to the Wall Street Journal, Roche Holdings released a statement that said that Avastin had failed in late phase prostate malignant neoplastic disease tests. This intelligence was non good for shareholders who are estimated to hold lost jutting gross revenues of 7.48 billion dollars. The other bad intelligence is that people who have been utilizing Avastin an antibody for intervention of malignant neoplastic disease, are besides paying for something that is non every bit effectual as they have been lead to believe. The 3rd point of involvement is that although scientists know what causes malignant neoplastic disease, new stairss are being made to detect what specifically causes prostatic malignant neoplastic disease, and other types of malignant neoplastic disease. In an exciting article in Science News, writer L. Sanders reviews a new survey that suggests likely links between â€Å" self-renewing root cells † and prostatic malignant neoplastic disease ( 2010 ) . The survey suggests that cistrons are the perpetrator. â€Å" Think approximately malignant neoplastic disease as a disease of root cells, Mutants in these cells can do normal root cells to lose their regularized behaviour and alternatively turn into an inchoate malignant neoplastic disease † ( Sanders 2010 ) . The research workers besides found that prostatic tissue cells called â€Å" Basal root cells † are the most likely perpetrator in research lab trials done on mice. In all the research they have done,  " Basal root cells are what drives the malignant neoplastic disease, irrespective of the type of mutant † says Owen Witte, a research worker at the University of California. â€Å" A specific cistron called Bmi-1 plays a important function in â€Å" Basal root cells † reclamation procedure, when Bmi-1 activity was reduced, the cells were no longer able to self renew, nor did they organize tumours † ( Sanders 2010 ) . The 4th point of involvement is that surveies show household history of prostate malignant neoplastic disease as one of the taking hazard factors associated with prostate malignant neoplastic disease. As Damber and Aus ( 2008 ) discovered while researching prostate malignant neoplastic disease, household history is a big factor when measuring 1s single hazard factors. They hypothesize that one evident ground for this is that cistrons are passed down biologically from male parent to boy. They besides believe that the malignant neoplastic disease doing cistrons mutate, but the ground ( s ) why are still unknown. Harmonizing to the text edition writers, Rathus, Nevid, and Rathus ( 2008 ) devouring high sums of animate being fats has been shown to increase 1s hazard of acquiring prostatic malignant neoplastic disease. They besides discuss how the opportunities are higher in black males than in white males. One thing Damber and Aus ( 2008 ) did note in their survey was that the figure of instances of prostate malignant neoplastic disease was higher in work forces in urbanised states as opposed to Asiatic work forces. The ensuing surveies showed that lifestyle differences every bit good as exposure to radiation were the grounds for the different statistics between Asiatic work forces and those in more urbanised states. They besides discuss how PSA and other showing methods are still being studied excessively analyze merely how effectual they really are. Once work forces are suspected of holding prostate malignant neoplastic disease, the most common method of diagnosing is a biopsy which is surgically taking a little part of the suspected tumour for proving. Most patients once they are diagnosed with the disease, are concerned with how concentrated the malignant neoplastic disease is, because it is this factor more than any other that determines how long they have to populate. â€Å" In other words, the disease establishes the forecast more than the pick of intervent ion. † ( Damber and Aus 2008 ) Treatment methods are varied and all have hazards involved, but as the writers pointed out, most intervention programs are based on factors such as the PSA figure, ( how high or low ) the degree is, the size and arrangement of the tumour, every bit good as the patients single life anticipation. Treatment plans besides vary depending on if the malignant neoplastic disease is localized to merely the prostate, or if it has advanced ( grown ) within the prostate, or if the cancerous cells have spread to other parts of the organic structure more serious intervention options will be considered. Damber and Aus ( 2008 ) speculate that intervention methods for both localized and advanced prostate malignant neoplastic disease will stay the same for the clip being. The 5th point of involvement is the existent intervention processs that are presently used. Harmonizing to K. Charles in her article about prostate malignant neoplastic disease in the Daily News, NY, she discusses the three major ways to handle prostatic malignant neoplastic disease. Surgery, external beam radiation, and radioactive seed implant therapy. A 4th new and extremist intervention option is known as â€Å" active survellaince, which is fundamentally making nil but invariably supervising the malignant neoplastic disease. She discusses in her article that physicians have non yet been able to make up one's mind which intervention option is more effectual than another, as they say that the consequences of each intervention option vary instance to instance. These discrepancies besides depend on how progressed the malignant neoplastic disease is and how healthy the patient was before they got malignant neoplastic disease. The 6th point of involvement is a possible prostate malignant neoplastic disease intervention that is still being researched called Cryotherapy. In an article by A. Gardner, she discusses how several prostatic malignant neoplastic disease patients had successful cryoblation and their tumours were successfully thwarted. The method is still in research nevertheless, and as Dr Debra Monticciolo said, â€Å" The construct is good, but we need a bigger survey with longer follow up. It takes a piece for a twosome of tumour cells left behind to garner adequate steam to be noticed † ( Gardner 2010 ) . One of the most controversial methods of intervention is to make nil and merely look into in on the malignant neoplastic disease often, to guarantee that it has non grown or spread. In an article by Johnsun and Treurnicht, they claim that, â€Å" The bulk of work forces with low-risk prostate malignant neoplastic disease will decease of unrelated causes † ( 2009 ) . They besides d iscuss how this newer method of intervention, officially known as â€Å" active surveillance † challenges the old method of radiation, and alternatively speculate that attentive non-action, with merely minimum interventions is perchance more effectual. Johnsun and Treurnicht researched a group of 549 malignant neoplastic disease patients who were offered â€Å" active surveillance † or surgery. The patients chose the surgery. Over an 8 twelvemonth clip span, it was discovered that the lone manner to guarantee if â€Å" active surveillance † is an effectual method of intervention is by perennial surveies of work forces who have had biopsies. In another article I reviewed, writer R. Lane and C. Metcalfe looked into a survey that is being conducted in the UK. The survey is a â€Å" randomised controlled test measuring different prostate malignant neoplastic disease interventions † ( 2008 ) . In the article, they claim that repetition PSA testing is one of the most effectual methods for make up one's minding if one needs surgery. Harmonizing to the article, work forces whose Prostate specific antigen degrees are between 3.0 and 19.99 ng/mL are all campaigners for intervention and most likely, a biopsy. Besides harmonizing to Lane and Metcalfe, in the test referred to in the article, the participants were between 50 and 70 old ages old. The decisions of the writers was that â€Å" reiterate PSA blood testing, peculiarly in work forces aged & lt ; 60 old ages, may assist place those with high hazard malignant neoplastic disease who would profit from aggressive intervention, every bit good as forestalling over-diagnosi ng work forces with clinically undistinguished disease and avoiding biopsy in those with no malignant neoplastic disease † ( 2008 ) . The 7th point of involvement in respects to Prostate Cancer sensing methods is the struggle over PSA proving and its accurate consequences, or is it every bit accurate as one would trust? Nogueira, Corradi, and Eastham ( 2009 ) explore other biomarkers besides PSA trials. They believe that â€Å" although PSA is the best malignant neoplastic disease biomarker available, it is non perfect. It lacks both the sensitiveness and specificity to accurately observe the presence of prostate malignant neoplastic disease † ( Nogueira et al. , 2009 ) . In their article, they evaluate the advancement that is being made towards being able to utilize freshly discovered biomarkers to assist screen for prostate malignant neoplastic disease. The surveies that they review show that Human Kallikrein 2 or ( hK2 ) is a serine peptidase that is closely related to PSA in sequence. The surveies have revealed nevertheless, that ( hK2 ) is non ready to be used yet as it can bespeak that there are malign ant neoplastic disease cells active in the blood, but non accurately plenty. This is similar to the job that research workers run into with PSA proving. Several other membrane antigens and antibodies are besides being studied, but none of them are yet ready to be used as farther research and testing is still needed. In the text edition, Rathus, Nevid, and Rathus ( 2008 ) agree with this article that PSA testing is the best method available. This should non be seen as though no advancement has been made nevertheless, because as Dr. Richard Stock said, â€Å" The past 40 old ages have seen a revolution in prostatic malignant neoplastic disease intervention. Not merely are 90 % of instances caught before they metastasize, but physicians have immensely improved engineering for contending malignant neoplastic disease in the other 10 % of patients † ( Charles 2009 ) . The 8th point of involvement is the recent intelligence that the American Cancer Society has released new guidelines on prostate malignant neoplastic disease showings. In the article by A. Gardner, it discusses how the American Cancer Society is now seting less accent on everyday PSA testing and more accent on doctor-patient conversations and determinations. These new guidelines are issued as a consequence of research and the on-going struggle over how accurate PSA proving truly is. Harmonizing to a statement issued by the American Cancer Society, â€Å" work forces with no symptoms of prostatic malignant neoplastic disease who are in comparatively good wellness and can anticipate to populate another 10 old ages should do an informed determination with their physician about prostate malignant neoplastic disease showing after larning the uncertainnesss, hazards, and possible benefits associated with such showing † ( Gardner 2010 ) . These new statements disagree with with what Rathus, Nevid, and Rathus ( 2008 ) , province in the text edition, â€Å" The American Cancer Society recommends that work forces receive one-year digital rectal scrutinies get downing at the same age as PSA trials † ( Rathus et al. 2008 ) . They are now proposing that PSA proving should non be a demand for all work forces over 50. The 9th point of involvement, nevertheless, is that many agree that PSA testing is still non a really dependable or effectual method of sensing. In an article in Practical Nurse, urologist Professor Roger Kirby, manager of the Prostate Centre in London, states that, â€Å" PSA testing is enormously controversial because the figure of false positives and lost diagnosings of prostate malignant neoplastic disease generated by the trial raises inquiries about its utility † ( 2009 ) . In the article Kirby besides points out that although PSA testing is so unelaborated, that unluckily work forces do non hold many other options for sensing. He calls for more research into alternate proving methods for the presence of cancerous cells in 1s blood. He besides calls for more instruction among work forces, to do them aware of their hazard of undertaking prostate malignant neoplastic disease. Personal instruction and personal consciousness are cardinal elements in contending the mortality rate of prostate malignant neoplastic disease. The 10th point of involvement is the advancement being made towards educating the populace on prostate malignant neoplastic disease. In the European Journal of Cancer Care, lending writer S. Bowen, discusses a public wellness plan in Ireland called the National Cancer Information Service. It was developed because of the National Cancer Forum ‘s, â€Å" concern that high quality, accurate information and resources should be available to the populace † ( Bowen 2010 ) . The bulk of people who called in to the service concerned about prostate malignant neoplastic disease were work forces in their 50 ‘s to mid 60 ‘s. The service besides found that most work forces were naming to happen out how and where to acquire screened for prostate malignant neoplastic disease. Bowen thinks this is due to non adequate public consciousness of prostate malignant neoplastic disease, he believes that, â€Å" as the public becomes progressively cognizant of malignant neoplastic di sease, it is of import that they have entree to unclutter indifferent information from a responsible quality service informed by ongoing rating † ( 2010 ) . Overall, the popular media articles that I reviewed did look to hold with the academic diary articles. In respects to the cost of prostatic malignant neoplastic disease intervention, the text edition did non truly travel into deepness on the subject, but the two articles that I reviewed did look to hold with the consensus that prostatic malignant neoplastic disease intervention is expensive, and that the cost of intervention is lifting. Another issue that I reviewed was besides non truly covered by the text edition, but the article that I reviewed was converting in that it shows that more research is needed for prostate malignant neoplastic disease drugs. Another issue that I reviewed was besides non covered by the text edition, but I found it intriguing that scientists are coming so near to happening a manner to bring around malignant neoplastic disease. Another issue I reviewed was agreed upon in my text edition, the academic article and the popular media that risk factors for pros tate malignant neoplastic disease are pretty consistent. Another issue that I reviewed was the existent processs which did hold with my text edition. Another issue I reviewed was Cryotherapy, which is an experimental method, non covered in the text edition. Another issue was conflict over PSA testing, and I found that the academic and popular media did hold chiefly when it came to this issue. I do non experience that anything was left out in these articles or the text edition. I did experience that the academic surveies were and are legitimate. I believe that future surveies should concentrate on prostate malignant neoplastic disease sensing and intervention. The articles that I reviewed were really assuring as they show that a batch of advancement has already been made in mention to prostate malignant neoplastic disease intervention and sensing. I think that scientists and research workers should go on what they are making, particularly with the research on root cells and their direct connexions to malignant neoplastic disease. I think that happening the cause of prostate malignant neoplastic disease should be the figure one precedence of research workers. I besides feel that happening the future remedy to malignant neoplastic disease can merely be done if much more extended root cell and cistron research is conducted. Until that remedy is found howver, I believe it is of import to concentrate today ‘s research on happening more accurate methods of proving, as PSA blood testing has been shown clip and clip once more to non be every bit dependable as medical professionals would wish it to be. The new findings that I discussed are rather exciting though, and the possibility of happening a 100 % accurate trial for cancerous cells in the blood stream is most likely shortly to be a world. The find of a new and more accurate testing method for prostate malignant neoplastic disease would assist increase the figure of subsisters every bit good as lessening the figure of false readings and incorrect diagnosings. I feel that the of import message throughout the articles and research that I conducted is that work forces need to be more educated and more cognizant of prostate malignant neoplastic disease and its symptoms and that physicians need to pass more clip with their patients who are diagnosed with prostate malignant neoplastic disease. I think that households with a history of prostate malignant neoplastic disease demand to hold father-to-son treatments about prostate malignant neoplastic disease and that they might desire to cut down on their consumption of carnal fats and their exposure to radiation as that raises their hazard. Black work forces who consume a batch of ruddy meat with a household history of prostate malignant neoplastic disease should be particularly concerned. The other of import thing is that work forces who are diagnosed with prostate malignant neoplastic disease demand to be informed of all their options, non merely the options that benefit and are profitable to th e medical establishment supplying the intervention, or the drug company supplying the drugs for intervention. The new â€Å" active surveillance † prostate malignant neoplastic disease intervention method is still under examination as to whether it is every bit effectual as medical professionals are trusting it will be. I besides think that reform is needed in respects to the hideous cost of intervention, which for the mean individual, is really difficult to afford. The general public needs to be more cognizant and educated ; more societies such as the American Cancer Society are needed to assist raise consciousness and to supply valuable information, resources, and support to those who are affected. The fiscal load on those with prostatic malignant neoplastic disease is besides something that needs to be addressed. The hereafter of prostate malignant neoplastic disease is one that is difficult to foretell nevertheless, because cancerous cells and cistrons are invariably mutating and altering coevals from coevals. The sheer sum of clip, money, and resources that have been put into malignant neoplastic disease research and interventions is unbelievable. I think that the hereafter of prostate malignant neoplastic disease will hopefully be cut short by the find of a manner to forestall the cancerous cells from mutating, whether it is from radiation, antibodies, or remotion of the cancerous cells. I besides feel that the of import message to anyone reading this is personal duty and personal consciousness and instruction. It is non groups such as the American Cancer Society ‘s duty to educate and assist those who are contending prostate and other signifiers of malignant neoplastic disease, it is the person ‘s duty to make all that they can, within ground, to forestall and observe malignant neoplastic disease early, before it is excessively late. Fear, cunctation, ignorance, and deficiency of wellness attention and coverage are large issues when it comes down to the truth. The fact of the affair is that many people who are deceasing and have died from prostate malignant neoplastic disease could hold been saved if they had detected it earlier. The importance of acquiring everyday showings for work forces over 50 old ages old is important. The proving methods may non be 100 % accurate, but it is better to be informed than to merely take a opportunity with your life.