Prostate Cancer

The prostate is a walnut-size gland that makes and stores semen, a milky liquid that nourishes sperm. It’s located below the bladder in front of the rectum and surrounds the upper part of the urethra, the tube that empties urine from the bladder. Because of the location of the prostate gland in the body, diseases of the prostate (both cancerous and noncancerous) may affect bladder and sexual function. Nerves and blood vessels that control erectile function are near the prostate and can be affected by prostate cancer or treatment for prostate cancer.

More than 90 percent of prostate cancers are found when they’re still within the prostate gland. Prostate cancer can spread by extending outside of the prostate capsule (a thick covering of the prostate) or up into the seminal vesicles (two small tubelike glands that sit on top of the prostate). Sometimes prostate cancer can spread into lymph nodes in the pelvis or into bones.