Know what to look for

The first thing to understand about signs of prostate cancer is that early prostate cancer may cause no symptoms at all. The NHS explains that symptoms often do not develop until the cancer has grown enough to affect surrounding structures or has spread.

Changes worth discussing with a healthcare professional can include:

• Difficulty starting to urinate or needing to strain
• A weak urine flow
• A flow that repeatedly stops and starts
• Needing to urinate urgently or frequently
• Getting up during the night to urinate
• Feeling that your bladder has not fully emptied
• Blood in urine or semen
• Difficulty getting or maintaining an erection
• Unexplained weight loss or persistent lower-back pain

These symptoms are not proof of cancer. Benign prostate enlargement and other conditions can cause similar problems.

Check your personal risk

Before discussing screening, consider your age and family history. Tell your doctor if close relatives have had prostate cancer or if your family has a history of breast, ovarian or pancreatic cancer, because inherited genetic changes can sometimes affect prostate cancer risk.

Your ethnic background can also be relevant. The NHS identifies Black African and African Caribbean background as associated with increased prostate cancer risk.

Understand PSA before having the test

A PSA result is not a cancer diagnosis. PSA can be elevated because of prostate cancer, but also because of conditions such as benign prostate enlargement or prostatitis.

The National Cancer Institute explains that PSA screening can produce false-positive results and can lead to further investigations. Screening can also identify cancers that might never have caused health problems during a person's lifetime.

Check local guidance

Before arranging routine screening, check the current recommendations in your country and discuss your individual circumstances with a healthcare professional. Screening approaches differ between the UK, US, Australia, Canada and other countries.

Most importantly, do not dismiss new, persistent or worsening symptoms simply because they are common or because you are outside a routine screening age range. Symptoms require an individual medical assessment rather than a screening eligibility check.