Promaxo Celebrates Prostate Cancer Awareness Month

September is Prostate Cancer Awareness Month, and Promaxo is celebrating by helping shed light on the most common non-skin cancer diagnosed in men.

When it comes to cancer, one of the most powerful tools for survival is education, and you won’t find many organizations who do a better job of bringing attention to the disease than the National Cancer Institute. 

In language listed on its website, the National Cancer Institute’s Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) Program says it “provides information on cancer statistics in an effort to reduce the cancer burden among the U.S. population.”

The site includes copious amounts of stats, facts, reports and reviews on cancers ranging from A (adolescents and young adults) to V (vulva). Scroll past pancreas under the P section, and you come to prostate, the walnut-sized gland found in the male reproductive system — and, according to Blue Cure, the site where about 16% of all men will be diagnosed with cancer at some point in their lives.

What causes prostate cancer?

Like many cancers and potentially terminal diseases, the exact cause of prostate cancer is still unknown. However, the American Cancer Society reports that researchers have discovered some risk factors that may make someone more susceptible to prostate cancer.

Though it can be a complex subject, the simple way of explaining what happens to our bodies with prostate cancer is that an otherwise normal prostate cell receives some type of unexpected DNA change. We know that DNA mutations can be cancer catalysts because they prompt cells to grow rapidly. But of those DNA mutations associated with prostate cancer, only about 10% are believed to be inherited from a parent. The other types, called acquired gene mutations, are the result of someone’s cell imperfectly dividing into two cells, which produces defective DNA.

Some research indicates that excessive prostate cell growth might also be generated in men with higher hormone levels in testosterone or insulin-like growth factor-1, though the American Cancer Society is transparent that additional research is needed in this area to make a definitive conclusion.

Which men are most at risk for developing prostate cancer?

With so much mystery surrounding the disease, one of the tenets of Prostate Cancer Awareness Month is to talk about the things we understand to be true. For instance, we know that it’s generally found in men older than 40, and that the likelihood of developing prostate cancer rises rapidly after the age of 50.

One of the caveats of the age marker is that race and ethnicity can influence who receives a diagnosis and when it happens. Men of African American and Caribbean descent are not only more likely to develop prostate cancer, but they also tend to be younger when it happens. Of note, Asian-American and Hispanic/Latino men are among the least likely to develop prostate cancer.

How prevalent is prostate cancer?

While stats around other pervasive cancers, like those pertaining to the breast and skin, are well known, widespread recognition of prostate cancer’s prevalence is still lacking. What most people don’t realize is that SEER estimates there will be more than 190,000 new cases of prostate cancer in 2020. Additionally, more than 33,000 men battling the disease will lose their lives this year as a result.

The positive news is that both new cases and deaths appear to be in a downward trend. Statistical models show new prostate cancer dropping an average of 4.3% per year, with deaths falling at a 2.1% year-over-year average.

The reason for that dip is likely because of a concerted effort to impart the importance of prostate health. In partnership with physicians across the country, groups like SEER, American Cancer Society, Urology Care Foundation, Prostate Cancer Foundation and others, have been instrumental in doing just that. Social media has also been a valuable platform for promoting data-driven initiatives like Prostate Cancer Awareness Month.  

The way to truly accelerate that momentum is through the evolution of technology that not only aids in early detection but also precise detection (more on both of those in our next blog post later this month) — and that’s where we think Promaxo can help.

Promaxo’s role in the fight against prostate cancer

Our company is committed to flipping the paradigm of prostate disease management on its head. Currently, patients receive a prostate cancer diagnosis through antiquated methods that include blinded biopsy. Promaxo’s vision involves office-based MRI, a nod to improving the patient experience for those leery of shuttling from facility to facility for services. Our high-resolution MRI uses artificial intelligence and will feature robotic tools to guide biopsies under live MRI and tissue characterization. It’s because of that full-scale functionality — from screening to diagnosis to treatment — that we believe we can make a difference in men's health.

To learn more about Promaxo, explore the technology that’s taking MRI to the next level. And if you’d like to chat further about prostate health or our MRI system, don’t hesitate to contact us.