Every 45 minutes, one UK man dies from this

Prostate cancer is the most common cancer in UK males, so knowing the signs and symptoms could literally be a life saver.

Let’s look at what a prostate is, what symptoms you need to keep an eye out for, and how at risk you could be.

What is a prostate?

The prostate is a gland located just below the bladder in men. This small but mighty gland plays an important role in the reproductive system by producing a fluid that nourishes and transports sperm.

As men age, the prostate can become enlarged, which can lead to a condition known as benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) which can cause uncomfortable urinary symptoms.

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What is prostate cancer and is it different from BPH?

Prostate cancer and benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) are very different. BPH is benign which means ‘not cancer’ and hyperplasia means ‘abnormal cell growth’ and having this condition does not increase your risk of getting prostate cancer.

Although the symptoms of prostate cancer and BPH are similar, these conditions are both very different. Prostate cancer can be deadly if it isn’t caught at an early stage with the survival rates drastically declining from stage 1 to stage 4.

According to Cancer Research UK, if prostate cancer is diagnosed at stage 1, almost 100% will survive for 5 years or more. However, when diagnosed at stage 4 (meaning that the cancer has spread to other parts of the body), the difference in survival can be staggering. At this stage, the survival rate is only 50% surviving for 5 years or more.

Know your risk

The scary part about prostate cancer is that it’s pretty much symptomless which is why knowing your risk is essential.

Prostate cancer UK has made it easier for people to find out more about your risk of prostate cancer, all you need to do is answer 3 simple questions - click here to try it.

All you need to do is pop in your age, if your father or brother has had prostate cancer and your ethnicity (the risk is higher for black men). Then in a matter of seconds, this handy little tool can provide you with an overview of your risk of prostate cancer.

What to look out for

Signs of prostate cancer are often spotted during routine check-ups with a doctor but more often than not, your body won’t show many symptoms. But some men will experience changes in their urinary and sexual functions that may point towards prostate cancer.

Detecting prostate cancer early can sometimes be difficult as not everyone experiences symptoms. However, some of the signs to look out for include:

• Weak or interrupted flow of urine
• Difficulty starting urination or holding urine back
• A need to urinate more, especially at night
• Painful or burning urination
• Difficulty having an erection
• Blood in urine or semen
• Painful ejaculation
• Frequent pain or stiffness in the lower back, hips or upper thighs
  
  

How your life insurance policy could help

Your life insurance policy isn’t just there for the money - it can offer so much more.

Many of the top insurers in the UK now offer free additional benefits* included within your cover. We aren’t talking about any old benefits either, these extras in your policy can sometimes be the difference between an early diagnosis or a second medical opinion.

What sort of benefits can you get included with your cover?

Depending on the insurer you go with, the benefits you can get with your life insurance policy can range all the way from free mental health support to access to free 24/7 online GP appointments.

Here are some of the top benefits you may be able to access with your cover, depending on the insurer you’re with:

• If you have a policy with Royal London, you’ll be able to access their services called Thrive, TrackActiveMe and HealthHero. These include; interactive muscle, joint and spine pain help with an interactive chat and unique programs to help get you back on track, 24/7 access to free GP appointments, and free mental health support
• Aviva offers Digicare+ to their customers where you can access benefits such as: an annual health check, nutrition support, mental health support, bereavement support and second medical opinions (just to name a few)
• If you take out a policy with AIG, the benefits they offer are in abundance. They provide service called Smart Health which can provide a range of support services including; 24/7 access to GP consultations - online or by phone, fitness plans and advice, mental health support and counselling, Health checks, second medical opinions and nutrition plans and advice
• With Legal and General, they offer multiple wellbeing support benefits which can help support you and provide practical guidance on navigating the NHS, social care, charities, support groups, and later life planning
• If you have a policy with Scottish Widows, they have personal nurses who can offer support for the following situations: long term physical and mental illness, trauma, bereavement and disability

How to check for prostate cancer at home

Unlike other types of cancer, like testicular cancer for example, there is no easy way to check yourself at home.

The definitive way to find out if you have prostate cancer is through PSA testing. If your doctor suspects that you have prostate cancer because your PSA level is very high, they may suggest getting other lab tests (blood, urine, or prostate biopsy samples) to help get a better idea of if you have prostate cancer or not.

Let’s talk about PSA testing

The simple test that is crucial used to look for prostate cancer is called a PSA test and it’s really nothing more than a simple blood test. It may be simple but this blood test could be crucial in detecting a measurement of Prostate Specific Antigen (PSA) concentration in your blood.

Prostate cancer is similar to many other types of cancer, in the sense that your risk increases with your age but this doesn’t mean this type of cancer only affects older men - prostate cancer is the second most common cancer in men worldwide.

Those who are more at risk of prostate cancer are men who are Black, and men who have a brother or father with prostate cancer, are 2.5x more likely to get prostate cancer. If you’re aged 50, you should be in talks with your doctor about PSA testing. If you’re Black, you need to start that conversation at 45, and if you have a brother or father with a history of prostate cancer, you should try and do it at 45.

Have you heard of critical illness cover?

Critical illness cover is a type of life insurance policy which can financially protect you if you were diagnosed with a critical illness, as defined in your terms and conditions.

If you were to be diagnosed with one of these illnesses, your policy could pay out a tax-free cash lump sum to ensure that your loved ones wouldn’t struggle financially, if the worst were to happen to you.

Lastly, having a critical illness policy in place could give both you and your loved ones peace of mind (after all, that’s one of the main benefits of having a policy in place).

What can a critical illness policy help pay for?

If you sadly had to make a claim on your critical illness cover, the pay-out from your policy could help you pay for the essentials and help support your loved ones, as you may not be able to work as normal.

But the money can also be used to make lasting memories with your loved ones too. A once in a lifetime holiday with your family could be funded by the pay-out from your critical illness policy. At the end of the day, the money would be yours to do what you want with. Here are some of the top ways you could use the pay-out from your critical illness policy:

• Tick things off your bucket list (a dream holiday, maybe even skydiving?)
• The essentials. We’re talking about all of those boring things that no one likes to think about; the monthly bills, rent/mortgage payments, childcare costs, vets bills, food shopping
• Changes to your lifestyle and home don’t come for free. With the pay-out from a critical illness policy, you could pay for any adjustments with the money from your policy
• If you don’t want to use the money whilst you’re still here, the pay-out from your policy could be saved and used as a nest egg for your loved ones. So that they’ll have some money put aside to help them get by, when you’re no longer here
  
  

*Free benefits are non-contractual and can be removed at any time