A reader posted a comment on one of my blogs and asked "What tests positively determines prostate cancer?" It prompted me to do a little research. 80 percent of men over 70 years old will get prostate cancer. That is a devastating statistic. A lot of times in the medical field diagnosing something requires a multitude of tests to rule out things and to get a better diagnosis. Such is the case for prostate cancer.

There are several tests used to diagnose prostate cancer. Blood tests, rectal exams, rectal ultrasounds, needle biopsy, and cystoscopy. A high level of PSA in the blood can be a sign of prostate cancer. PSA is a protein produced by cancerous prostate cells. With a rectal exam your doctor can feel for lumpy or a hard prostate. If a lump or hardening is found then most often they will do a needle biopsy to examine under a microscope. A cystoscopy is an examination of your bladder and uretha but can help determine several types of cancer and not just bladder cancer.

With all kinds of cancer, it is important to stay up to date with yearly exams for prevention. I hope this information helps.

June 6 marks the nationwide Cancer Awareness Day. Educational programs on screening and prevention garner a great presence for breast, prostate, ovarian, lung, and colon cancers. All of these cancers, except for colon cancer, are falling in death rates due to early detection. But there is another cancer, sometimes called the forgotten cancer, which is rising steadily in statistics of people having and dying with this disease.

As a bladder cancer survivor, founder of Indie Music For Life non-profit, and a new writer for the Life Sciences Cancer blog, I have a personal goal to make more people aware of this particular type of cancer, the symptoms, and prescreening that can be done if you or a loved one have the symptoms below.