Digital rectal exam: Your best Father’s Day treat

FATHER’S DAY will be observed tomorrow, and what better way to show your dad you care about him and his health than by educating him on early signs and prevention of one of the most common problems in men: those that affect the prostate gland?

While prostatitis, prostate enlargement and even prostate cancer may not exhibit any symptoms in its early stages these problems may be detected by a digital rectal exam (DRE), which is the simplest and most widely performed screening procedure.

“Although most men find the DRE embarrassing and unpleasant, it is very necessary. We should realize that prostate cancer is the 4th most common cancer with about 4,000 new cases detected every year as well as the 4th leading cause of death among elderly Filipino males,” said urologist Clayton Blas of the Philippine Urological Association.

Blas heads a committee that will oversee this year’s “PaD.R.E. ka, Pare Ko” program, an annual activity not only spearheaded by PUA but also by the Department of Health and the Philippine Cancer Society.

70 centers

“More than 70 centers (in both government and  private hospitals and clinics) nationwide are involved. Men 40 years old and older may drop by any time from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. today to undergo the free DRE (call PUA hotline 454-4439 or 925-6740 for the list of participating hospitals),” said Blas who expects thousands of Filipino men to undergo this procedure that takes a few minutes to perform.

During the examination, the doctor gently puts a lubricated, gloved finger of one hand into the rectum. He or she may use the other hand to press on the lower belly or pelvic area.

“Each elderly male Filipino patient who consults in each of the more than 70 centers is seen and examined by a urology specialist for free, given free medications and advised regarding further work up,  follow up and management. In this manner we hope to detect prostatitis, prostate enlargement, otherwise known as benign prostatic hyerplasia or BPH as well as prostate cancer among the patient screened on today. If a particular patient will exhibit positive signs, he will be requested to undergo more specific examination to confirm the suspected problem,” Blas said.

Prostatitis is an infection or   inflammation of the prostate gland that may cause many symptoms, including difficulty or painful urination, frequent urination, inability to get an erection as well as decreased interest in sex.

The BPH, on the other hand, is a noncancerous enlargement of the prostate gland and can cause impediment in the flow of urine from the bladder and other symptoms similar to prostatitis.

“What we are most worried about is prostate cancer as this is the most common cancer in men killing one almost every 19 minutes (some 300,000 men around the world are diagnosed to have it every year). If your family has a history of prostate cancer or that one of your male family members have persistent urinary symptoms—always waking up through the night to urinate, having to wait for the flow of urine to begin as well as an urgent need to urinate—better convince him to visit a urologist as soon as possible,” Blas suggested.

Indeed, by encouraging our fathers to take action and be more proactive about their prostate health, our families stand a better chance of keeping cancer and any sort of prostate problems out of our lives.