Most people rightly consider prostate cancer to be a disease that affects elderly males; however, it would also be foolish to rule out the possibility that prostate cancer will not affect young men because it has been known to damage men whilst they are still in their thirties. In the case of young males, prostate cancer can develop because of hereditary reasons. In case you happen to have gone past your fiftieth birthday, getting a prostate test done is advisable.
Basic Blood Test
Essentially, a prostate test is nothing more than a basic blood test that allows doctors to catch the disease in its early stages. Getting a prostate test done can help you get protection from one of the most deadly of all diseases that is known to affect men who are in the latter stages of their lives.
When you get a prostate test done, the doctor will draw blood which is then sent to a laboratory for testing and analysis. Even if the results of your prostate test turn out to be negative it does not in any way guarantee that you are free from risk of suffering from cancer; on the other hand, an abnormally high result too also does not mean that you do in fact have cancer.
What you need to look for is that your PSA (Prostate Specific Antigen) count falls between 0 and 3.9 nanograms which indicate that things are normal with you. Any level that is above that magical 3.9 nanograms count will indicate possibility of suffering from prostate cancer that in turn can take the form of swelling or even inflammation or infection.
Once the prostate test results are in, you will then need to follow your doctor’s instructions – even in instances when the results only allude to the possibility of something being wrong with you. Age also plays an important role in deciding your PSA count and the older you are, the higher your PSA count will be.
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It is recommended that you have your prostate test done on an annual basis. Another factor that you will need to weigh carefully is understand the prostate anatomy because once you are well informed about the prostate gland, you will be in a better position to determine when it is time to undergo a prostate test.
Some other factors that can help you decide on whether or not to get a prostate test done include being in a better position to detect the problem in good time, and also that the test is very simple. The bottom line is that a prostate test is not perfect and does not clearly identify prostate cancer; it should be used only as an indicator of the presence of prostate cancer.
