is there another way to get a prostate exam besides using the finger?

Question

scared to have one..im 40 and they say i should have one at this age..why?

Answer 1

you should try your best to relax.This is the best way to do so along with the only way. Think of it this way..I have seen this in my line of work and it is best to prevent,prevent,prevent..........your doing this to detect cancer and to check fr an enlarged prostate. You can have a digital exam to prevent it or not have it at all and say hello to
A weak stream of urine when stopping and starting of the stream


Difficulty starting urination


Dribbling of urine, especially after urinating


A sense of not emptying the bladder


Leaking of urine


More frequent urination and a strong and sudden desire to urinate, especially at night


As the prostate grows larger and the urethra is squeezed more tightly, the bladder might not be able to fully compensate for the problem and completely empty. Rarely, blockage from prostate enlargement may cause repeated urinary tract infections and gradually result in bladder or kidney damage. It may also cause a sudden inability to urinate (acute urinary retention)—a medical emergency

Answer 2

Not really . There is really no substitute for a well educated finger. I'm not trying to be funny . Because of their 1.5 -2 mm's of sensitivity , fingers can transmit a lot of important information that couldn't be gotten otherwise.
Nobody likes prostate exams but considering the simple fact of male life -the 100% possibility of getting prostate cancer if we live long enough - the minor discomfort of the exam is a small price to pay for a longer life.
Could you imagine if we had to go through the oby/gyn exams that our women go thru ?

Answer 3

No studies have proven having the blood test alone is just as effective as rectal exam + psa test. This is why women have to have both a breast exam and mammogram. Some people have been looking at different blood markers or using MRI/ultrasound/PET scan for detection of prostate cancer, but they are expensive and impractical.
Screening starts at 40 y.o. because that is the time when the incidence of prostate cancer rises in men...if men live long enough, every one of them will develop prostate cancer.
Nobody like to have them done and nobody likes to do them. It is just one of those things that comes as we get older. As a bonus when the doc does rectal exam, they can also test your stool for blood (screen for colon ca). The doc is also assessing other things during the exam...hemorrhoids, rectal cancer, anal fissures, prostate size (benign prostate hypertrophy), etc.

Answer 4

They can do a sonigram using a probe. The probe is larger than a finger and more expensive. Just cough and it will be over in a second. LOL

Answer 5

it's no big deal , it only takes a min.and won't hurt. Trying to push out a big log is worse