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Medical Services:Prostate Health - Introduction
The longer a man lives, the greater the likelihood that his prostate will enlarge and the greater too his risk of prostate cancer. Most of the time, prostate cancer never becomes life-threatening. Although roughly one man in six will be diagnosed with prostate cancer sometime during his lifetime, only one man in 33 will die from the disease. Most men with prostate cancer die from other causes.
Part of the male reproductive system, the prostate makes semen- the thick, whitish fluid that carries sperm from the penis and improves the survival odd of sperm in the acidic environment of a woman's vagina. Some functions of the prostate gland are not well understood, according to the National Cancer Institute (NCI). In this section, read more about two conditions, Noncancerous Prostate Enlargement, and Prostate Cancer, including risk factors, symptoms, screenings and treatment.
Click on any of the links at left for further information on Prostate Health Services at Northwest Community Hospital. Last Updated on 04/01/08 |
For most of their lives, most men may give little or no thought to the prostate gland. But as they grow older, many will become well acquainted with this obscure part of their anatomy. This not fully understood male sex gland becomes more significant every decade a man lives.
The prostate is a gland located inside the body at the base of the penis, just below the bladder and in front of the rectum. Shaped like a doughnut and about the size of a walnut, the prostate surrounds the first inch or so of the urethra- the tube that carries urine from the bladder to the penis.