Why You Need A Prostate Exam

Many men are struck with misery over the thought of taking a prostate exam, but they have to deal with the fact that it is essential in evaluating a man's health. The American Cancer Society states that it is advisable for men over 50 to go through a prostate exam once a year. In other place such as Europe, once in four years is enough, but it is recommended that each available prostate exam be taken, including the traditional digital rectal examination (DRE), the prostate-specific antigen (PSA) test, and the transrectal ultrasound (TRUS).

The digital rectal examination (DRE) is the more traditional prostate exam. It is quick and simple, but it is also embarrassing for men to have a doctor insert a finger into their rectum. During this exam, the doctor feels for abnormalities on the rear surface of the prostate. If the patient has been experiencing prostate symptoms, the gland would probably be enlarged. This prostate exam will confirm it.


Prostate diseases, including cancer, are usually indicated by an enlarged gland. In the early stages of cancer, the victim may not experience prostate symptoms as these will be much more evident in advanced stages when the tumor has grown to a size that is perceivable to the urethra, causing urinary troubles.

A prostate exam is recommended for the adult male. Prostate diseases may be more prevalent among older men, but technically, they can affect men of any age. Even if you have not had any prostate symptoms, ensuring that the gland is healthy is worth the trouble.

A digital rectal exam is an internal examination, something which men are undoubtedly not used to. Meanwhile, women expect them because their reproductive organs are internal. Perhaps a digital rectal examination may not get less embarrassing, but they can be made less uncomfortable by taking deep breaths and relaxing. Tension tightens muscles and contraction is not the way to go with DREs.

The PSA test is a prostate exam that involves screening the blood for PSA, a substance made by cells in the prostate. This is usually found in the semen, but a small percentage is also found in the blood. The ordinary PSA level is under 4 nanograms per milliliter of blood. If what is found in the test is more than that, it could mean cancer.

Meanwhile, transrectal ultrasound (TRUS) makes an image of the prostate viewable on a computer screen by emitting sound waves that create echoes as they enter the prostate. The pattern of these echoes is turned into an image of the prostate. This prostate exam is not common for detecting abnormalities, but is mostly used during biopsies.

Each prostate exam has problems in accuracy. Perhaps this is the reason why taking them together is recommended in other places. Each one supplies what the other one is missing. Do not wait for prostate symptoms to occur as they are not essential to the detection of a disease. Each man should keep his prostate healthy and consult the doctor as soon as trouble is imminent.