Why a Small Prostate May Indicate Disease

With consumer healthcare alerts consistently focused on the health issues involving the prostate, many men seek out medical attention and preventative health screenings in an effort to monitor potential prostate enlargement associated with aging. While prostate enlargement is a significant health concern for men, at the opposite end of the spectrum is an abnormally small prostate. For men, understanding the symptoms and prostate disease associated with an abnormally small prostate, will further encourage more active healthcare screenings with age.

The prostate is a crucial health concern for men, especially with age. Because prostate cancer, when not diagnosed and treated early, can lead to life threatening complications, many men seek out routine prostate examinations beginning around age 30. As part of the prostate rectal exam, the healthcare professional will run a variety of blood testing, including a prostate specific antigen, PSA, test. As a general guideline, elevated PSA levels are often an indication of an abnormality within the prostate, leading the healthcare professional to make additional treatment recommendations.

Unfortunately, for some men, PSA tests may turn normal even when an abnormality exists. In men with an increased production of estrogen type compounds, the excessive PSA levels normally present in prostate cancers may be negated. As a result, PSA testing may not be the only reliable test to clear a man of normal prostate health. Through the rectal examination, the healthcare professional can, as a general rule, surmise the prostate size and, in rare cases, find the prostate is abnormally small; a strong indicator of tumor growth.