Prostate Cancer Awareness
September is Prostate Cancer Awareness Month. How much do you really know about prostate cancer? It is one of the most common cancers in men, with about three million cases at any given time in the United States. Like many forms of cancer, early diagnosis is key. Many men are successfully treated for prostate cancer although it still claims the lives of about one in 40 men.
Common symptoms of prostate cancer include trouble urinating, blood in the semen, and discomfort in the pelvic area among others. The risk of developing prostate cancer increases with age. B African American men carry a greater risk than men of other races. Your risk may also increase with a family history, or if you are obese.
Prostate Cancer Misdiagnosis
Prostate cancer is commonly diagnosed using a digital rectal exam (DRE) and a prostate-specific antigen blood test (PSA) which needs to be confirmed by a biopsy. Sometimes a medical errors can delay or fail to diagnose prostate cancer. There is some controversy regarding whether healthy men should be screened for prostate cancer, and sometimes the diagnosis is missed altogether.
If your doctor failed to offer or recommend a routine cancer screening or an early prostate cancer screening, you may have a case for misdiagnosis. Other neglectful acts include failing to order PSA testing or performing DRE, failure to follow up on test results, and failure to communicate. A delayed or missed diagnosis of prostate cancer can result in complications including premature death, severe pain, inoperable cancer, loss of sexual function, lost wages, long-term or permanent disability.
Newest Prostate Cancer Treatments
Like other forms of cancer, there is constant research being performed to attempt to find new ways to treat prostate cancer. These new treatments are often presented at major scientific conferences, and doctors who are not in the know may fail to offer these treatments because they simply do not know about or have access to them.
Two of the latest prostate cancer treatments include a new drug called darolutamide and the addition of enzalutamide to ADT to reduce the chances of tumor growth or death. The new drug is an androgen receptor inhibitor which suggests a nearly 30% reduction in the risk of death, while the addition of the second drug has been found to greatly slow the growth of prostate cancer. If you suffer from prostate cancer, your doctor may have failed to learn about and offer you these new treatments.
If you are concerned about a possible medical error or misdiagnosis, contact the law firm of Pegalis Law Group, LLC. For almost 50 years, we’ve been advocating for people of all ages to help our clients financially, and our goal is to make healthcare safer for everyone. Reach out to us today by calling (516) 726-1549. Attorney Advertising