Prostate Cancer: Types & Stages
Because your prostate is so near vital primary structures, you want to make sure that your treatment specialists are experienced and knowledgeable. The radiation oncology specialists at Orange County CyberKnife are equipped to develop an effective prostate cancer treatment plan for you that minimizes the risk to these surrounding structures, based on the type and stages of your cancer. Orange County CyberKnife is the premier cancer treatment center of Southern California and Orange County, with a comprehensive array of radiation procedures.
Since 90% of prostate cancer is considered one type, the treatment options for early detected prostate cancer are the same.
Types Of Prostate Cancer
Your doctor will be able to tell the type of prostate cancer you have by taking samples of the cancerous tumor from your prostate during a biopsy. A pathologist can distinguish between the different types of cells by examining them through a microscope.
- Acinar Adenocarcinoma. This is, by far, the most common type of prostate cancer, encompassing 90% of all prostate cancers in the U.S. It starts in the gland cells of the prostate. Many of these cells grow slowly, but a few can progress more rapidly. There are other types of adenocarcinoma, which include atrophic, foamy, colloid and signet ring carcinoma. They are all treated in the same way as acinar adenocarcinoma. So if you are told you have any of these types, all the information in our prostate cancer section will still apply to you.
- Rare Prostate Cancer Types. The other 10% of rare prostate cancers could be one of the following types below. Because they are so rare, there is less known about how they develop and their treatment.
- Ductal adenocarcinoma. Starting in the cells that line the ducts of the prostate gland, this cancer grows and spreads more quickly than acinar adenocarcinoma. Sometimes men are in the advanced stages by the time it is diagnosed, with poor. It represents 0.4% to 0.8% of all prostate cancers and is associated with a poor prognosis. r chance of recovery.
- Transitional cell (urothelial cancer). This type of prostate cancer starts in the cells that line the urethra. Transitional cell cancer of the prostate may spread into the bladder entrance and into nearby tissues. More commonly, this type of cancer may start in the bladder and spread into the prostate.
- Squamous cell cancer. This type starts from the flat cells covering the prostate gland, called squamous cells. Squamous cell prostate cancer tends to grow and spread more quickly than adenocarcinoma, so it may be advanced when diagnosed.
- Carcinoid of the prostate. Carcinoid tumors start from cells of the neuroendocrine system, which is made up of specialized nerve and gland cells. These tumors are very rare and seem to be slowly growing.
- Small cell cancer. This is also a type of neuroendocrine tumour and is made up of small round cells. You may not have a raised PSA (prostate specific antigen) test, so it’s harder to find early and may be advanced when diagnosed.
- Sarcoma and sarcomatoid cancer Sarcomas start from muscle cells. They often grow quite quickly. The most common type of prostate sarcoma in adults is leiomyosarcoma. It tends to occur in men between the ages of 35 and 60. Sarcomatoid cancers have a mixture of sarcoma and adenocarcinoma cells.
Stages Of Prostate Cancer
Identifying the stages of prostate cancer is important to help determine treatment type and prognosis. The stages of prostate cancer, like other cancers, correspond with the methodology TNM – tumor, node, metastasis.
- Tumor – The larger the primary tumor or abnormal growth, the more serious.
- Node – The more lymph nodes that have cancerous cells, the more serious the cancer.
- Metastasis – Serious stages involve the spreading of cancer to other parts of the body.
Doctors assign levels for each of the above factors and then combine these levels into stages. They stages of prostate cancer are:
- Stage I – This is a non-invasive cancer found only in the prostate when the disease is so small it can’t be detected with a digital rectal exam (DRE) and isn’t seen in imaging. The tumor is smaller than one-half of one lobe of the prostate. Your PSA is less than 10.
- Stage II – The tumor is still restricted to inside the prostate, but has grown some.
- Stage IIa – The tumor encompasses between one-half of one lobe and two lobes.
- Stage IIb – The tumor encompasses both lobes of the prostate.
- Stage III – In Stage III, the cancer has just barely spread outside the prostate to nearby tissues, like the seminal vesicles. It has not spread to lymph nodes or metastasized to a distant tissue.
- Stage IV – In this stage, the cancer has metastasized outside the tissue, affecting other parts of the body including lymph nodes, the bones, liver, or lungs.
- Recurrent – This stage of cancer is used when the cancer returns to the originally infected place after treatment. Once that happens, doctors run more tests to establish a current stage.
Call Us Today To Find Out More
If you or a loved one has been diagnosed with prostate cancer and you still have questions, please give us a call at (714) 962-7100. Our team of internationally renowned radiation oncologists at Orange County CyberKnife are ready to work with you on a treatment plan to meet your individual needs. Our Southern California cancer treatment center is equipped with the latest radiosurgery and radiotherapy equipment to best reach and destroy cancerous cells, including the CyberKnife Robotic Radiosurgery system. Use these links to find out more about prostate cancer:
