Cancer is an abnormal condition which occurs once the normal cells start to know an uncontrollable and rapid growth and an even faster death while the cancerous cells tend to multiply at a fast pace and outlive the normal ones; if the tumor spreads far from the primary site to other surrounding parts of the internal body and develop new and secondary tumors then the cancer will eventually become metastatic. If the cancerous cells have entered the bloodstream, they will end up in any tissue or organ; these cells can also travel through the lymph system, which includes the lymph vessels, where a clear fluid called lymph is carried to the heart, being somehow similar to the blood vessels, and the lymph nodes. Basically, the cancer becomes metastasized only when the primary tumor, which is already locally advanced, continues with its spreading and the cancerous cells have reached out from the prostate capsule.
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The cancer will be named after the body part from where it started, even if the tumor has spread and invaded some other body parts and usually, when there are two or more metastatic tumors, this condition is called metastases. Sometimes doctors find it hard to identify the primary site of the cancer: in this situation the disease is called cancer of unknown primary and when the cancer comes back as metastases, refer to this condition as distant recurrence. The bone structures are the third most common site affected by the metastatic cancer, either being a breast cancer, a prostate cancer or any other type of cancer. The carcinomas are more likely to metastasize to bone in comparison to the sarcomas and the most common bone sites affected by the metastatic cancer are the spine, the pelvis or the hip, the femur or the upper leg bone, the ribs, the humerus or the upper arm bone and the skull. Usually the distant bone structures are less likely to get affected if the patient starts a treatment.

The symptoms often associated with bone metastasis are pain, hypercalcemia and pathological fractures. Metastatic cancer will cause pain, a symptom reported by almost seventy percent of the patients diagnosed with bone metastases, because prostate cancer has the predilection of affecting first the bone structures. The pain is caused because of the tumor, responsible for the stretching of the periosteum but also because of the nerve stimulation in the endosteum. The radionuclide bone scans, the coaxial tomography or the magnetic resonance imaging or MRI can confirm if the cancer has spread to the bones or not. The MRI is considered as the most sensitive method of detecting cancer because it can spot the cancerous cells long before they reach and affect the bone structures. The metastatic bone lesions are characterized as osteolytic, osteoblastic or mixed. Osteolytic lesions or tumors can cause an abnormal resorption of bone by the enzymes known as proteolytic and the spreading process outstrips the laying down of the new bone. Osteoblatic tumors cause a secretion of bone extracellular matrix proteins or ECM; in other words the tumor stimulates the bone growth. In most cases the lesions are identified as mixed.

The treatment procedures recommended for the terminal cancer stages are radiotherapy, chemotherapy and depending on the type of cancer, bisphosphonates. Chemotherapy is a popular treatment method for curing cancer and leukemia, while the radiation therapy has the effect of damaging the DNA of the cancerous cells so that it would stop their multiplication. The radiotherapy uses the internal beam radiation method by implanting radioactive seeds into the prostate gland and leaving them there to decay or the external proton beam radiation.

It is most unfortunate the fact that prostate cancer has no early signs or symptoms to make it detectable at an early stage. Doctors should focus more on prevention and less of the actual diagnose. Of course, it if very important that men over forty do the screening tests but they should also give up on bad habits like smoking and excessive drinking and follow a strict nutritional diet. A doctor’s or an herbalist’s advice should be taken in consideration.
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I’ve stated that there are no early symptoms but once the tumor starts spreading in the surrounding areas of the prostate, patients will experience painful and irritating sensations like: weak or frequent urine stream, pain while urinating, back pains, stiffness, burning while urinating, blood in urine or semen, ache or abdomen and bone pain, compression of the spine, leg weakness or incontinence and painful ejaculation.

The prostate cancer is an abnormal condition when the normal body cells tend to grow faster and without control while the cancerous cells appear and without treatment they start to multiply. The spreading of the cancer is a slow one, sometimes it can even take four years for the cancer to reach out of the capsule which contains the prostate, but once it succeeds, this spreading process will become a painful one. The staging system will determine whether the tumor is locally advanced or if the cancer is already metastasized; the spreading process is what interests us the most because it can be done by invading the surrounding areas and organs, traveling through the bloodstream or the lymph vessels. The metastatic cancer will definitely affect the spinal cord, the liver, the pelvis, the lungs, the ribs or the vertebrae. The symptoms associated with this advanced invasion are, in no particular order: frequent coughing, loss of appetite, chest and abdomen pains, muscle weakness because of the compression of the spine, weight loss, incontinence and a yellow skin.

Metastatic cancer will cause leg pains because prostate cancer has the predilection of affecting the bone structures. In normal conditions, a trauma can be seen as the main cause for the leg pain and because this is not the only common cause, a leg pain is usually ignored when it has to be associated with the existence of a prostate cancer. Strangely enough, the screening tests indicate that almost forty percent of men affected by this terrible disease report leg or back pains. The leg pain can be an early symptom or a terminal symptom, but a correct diagnose can only be put after the routine screening tests or after the prostate biopsy is done. The prescribed treatments will have to alleviate the pain you feel, but in the worst case scenario, there are side-effects which will only increase this unpleasant condition. There is no reason to frighten yourself if you feel leg pains because that doesn’t automatically mean you have cancer. Certain conditions that affect the joints, the bones, the muscles, the tendons, the nerves and blood vessels, the ligaments and even the skin can cause leg pains. Refrain from making hasty presumptions and contact your doctor immediately if you do feel the leg pain but you can not explain yourself what may cause it.

I have often heard the question “can prostate cancer spread to…?” and a body part. For instance can prostate cancer spread into the muscles? Or into the legs? Or into the throat? Well, the simple answer is yes, it can, through a process called metastasis, which is the later phase of this disease. The complicated answer is given through some knowledge on cancer in general, since prostate cancer is, after all, a cancer. So, can prostate cancer spread into muscles? Follow me:

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To begin an evaluation of cancers we need more information related to this disease: - Causes that lead to its occurrence; - The stage where the disease is; - Prognostic factors.

In order to reach a better understanding of all details related to this disease and all aspects deriving from it, you need to know every detail of the above. The information can be obtained from the doctor or specialist handling the case. To obtain the full medical name of the disease, its staging process, as well as information about the type of cells affected and ultimately prognostic factors, some specific tests will be performed. Copies of the results of any investigations that you will make will be stored for subsequent evaluation.

If you choose to do some research on your condition, namely use special literature, this can be extremely useful both for finding general information and to discover the latest information strictly related to that form of cancer. Treatment of cancers of each type is adapted to the form and stage of the disease and is dependent on the body part where it started, the cancer cell type, etc..

Cancerous disease occurs due to uncontrolled division of certain cells with particular characteristics, thus causing the appearance of a tumor mass. These cells that start the uncontrolled division of cells are called primary. The cells that form the primary tumor can break free and enter the blood stream or lymph system causing the corruption of other areas, giving rise to secondary tumors - metastasis. The metastatic tumor cells in tumors are of the same type as those in the tumor of origin.

For example in malignant tumors of the colon there may especially occur liver metastases. These tumors and metastatic liver tumors must be clearly distinguished from primary liver tumors, for which there is a different therapeutic approach. Also there needs to be a difference made between metastatic bone tumors and primary bone tumors.

There are important differences that must be made even between tumors with the same starting point of body, differences in prognosis and treatment are important from one form to another. This differentiation will be made through explorations that will help to establish the exact type of cancer, with the goal of optimal therapeutic approach. Cancer diagnosis is a laborious process where, although it may be clear from the start that a cancer exists, elements will be determined to help set a clear diagnosis of cancer - the exact type and stage of evolution.

The exact type of cancer and pathological diagnosis can be known with precision only after examination by the pathologist through a tissue biopsy. There are however certain forms of cancer of some organs that may where we may suspect from the start the type of pathology present. For example, on prostate cancer, in the great majority of cases we meet with forms of adenocarcinoma and also in frequent cancers of the cervix we see carcinoma.

The cancer of the prostate is an often encountered affliction, seen mostly in men who are aged more than 50. The chances of developing prostate cancer, and also prostate cancer that spreads to bones, grow with age, and also it has often been noted that cancer appears and grows in patients who have a family history of prostate cancer or ovarian cancer.

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There is a saying among specialists, according to which if men were to reach the age of 140, all of them would suffer from cancer in the prostate, but not all of these cases would come equipped with clinically visible symptoms.



According to research conducted, one safe conclusion is that some of the prostate cancer patients have a predisposition in their genes to develop prostate cancer. In layman terms this means that you have more chances to be diagnosed with prostate cancer if your brother, grandfather or father has heard such a diagnosis before you. The influence of the hormones is a major, very important, element in the occurrence as well as in the fight against cancer of the prostate.

For example, people who have been castrated or people who, say, have no testosterone secretion, will not develop prostate cancer. Influenced by testosterone and other androgens, the cancer of the prostate grows, while the influence of female hormones has a diminishing effect on the cancer and a shrinking effect on the tumor. The removal of the gonads, or in other terms the removal of the testicles, causes the tumor to go into remission.

The eating habits and the elements in the environment also have a bearing on the occurrence, evolution and fight against cancer of the prostate. It is common belief among specialists that the foods that are rich in vitamins C and A, such as vegetables, have a prophylactic effect on the body, while the food products that are oozing with fat favor the appearance and evolution of prostate cancer, because they change the cholesterol and the steroid metabolism.

There is no official and empirically certified connection between the appearance of prostate cancer and the existence of various infections, viruses or microbes, in the body. This is a cause for controversy in the scientific world, and until further proof is presented to elaborate this claim, caution imposes a temporary dismissal of such claims. Prostate cancer that spreads to bones usually describes a situation that doctors and cancer specialists call bone metastasis. A metastasis is a process in which the cluster of chaotically dividing cells (tumor) begins to spread its diseased cells towards the rest of the body, causing the infection of other nearby healthy organs and cells.



The diseased cells spread by the tumor roam through the organism, hitching rides on blood vessels until they reach new organs. Once they arrive at a new location, a new and healthy organ, the diseased cells catch root and start their own process of division. When the diseased cells disseminated by the prostate tumor reach one of the bones, the event is called metastasis of the bone, and this is a case of prostate cancer that spreads to bones. The usual symptoms of prostate cancer usually appear in the later stages of the disease, and are usually manifested as trouble during the process of urination.

Prostate cancer is a very common affliction, encountered especially in men aged over 50. The odds of prostate cancer occurrence grow with age, and it is not uncommon for the condition to develop, especially if there is a history of prostate cancer or ovarian cancer in the patient’s family. It is said that if men lived to be 140, they would all have prostate cancer, even if not all cases would show clinical symptoms.

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Research has shown, as I have said, that genetic predisposition is relevant in the incidence of prostate cancer. This means that you are more likely to develop prostate cancer if your father, grandfather or brother had or has prostate cancer.



Hormonal influence is an archenemy of prostate cancer. Eunuchs do not develop prostate cancer. Under the influence of androgens (for example testosterone) the prostate cancer grows, and under the influence of feminine hormones the prostate decreases in size. Castration makes the prostatic tumor go into regression.

The diet and factors in the environment also have relevance in the occurrence, development or fight against prostate cancer. It is believed that mostly vegetal foods, rich in vitamins A and C, have a protective effect, while foods that are rich in fat, which alters the cholesterol and steroidal metabolism, favor the occurrence of prostate cancer. Prostate cancer is not believed to occur from infections. Infectious factors, viral or microbes, are only partially accepted, and there is a bit of controversy among scientists in acknowledging viruses ad microbes as elements that cause prostate cancer to occur and or develop.

Prostate cancer of the bone means that the cancer has reached bone metastasis. Metastasis is the process where the tumor (abnormal agglomeration of cells that divide uncontrollably) starts spreading diseased cells throughout the body, infecting other, neighboring, organs and cells. The cells spread throughout the body latch on to blood vessels and travel to other organs and to the bones. Reaching the other organs, the diseased cells “set up camp” and start developing again. When the diseased cell coming from a prostate cancer tumor reaches a bone and starts developing on that bone, the situation is called bone metastasis, or, as you might call it, prostate cancer of the bone.

Symptoms usually occur in advanced local cancer, and are shown through problems in urination. The prostate surrounds the urethra, and when a tumor develops, it might start putting pressure on the urethra or even block it all together. Symptoms of prostate cancer include: often urination, dysuria, false incontinence through over filing in the bladder distension, acute retention of urine, blood in the urine, renal insufficiency, perineal pain, blood in the sperm, lymphedema of the lower limbs.



Another category of symptoms are those based to metastasis: pain in the bones, neurological phenomena, pathological bone fractures, asthenia, decreases in weight and signs of chronic renal insufficiency. Diagnosis of prostate cancer can be reached using an ultrasonic scan, a computerized tomography scan, nuclear magnetic resonance, radiological examinations, bone scintigraphy, analysis of the prostatic specific antigen and prostate biopsy.