What Happens in the Final Stages of Prostate Cancer?

What are the prostate cancer stages?

Prostate cancer is an abnormal growth of cells in the prostate gland. In the final stages of prostate cancer you may feel grief, get closer with family and friends, and have faith in a power greater than yourself.

The prostate is a gland about the size of a walnut that is a part of the male reproductive system. In the USA, roughly 13 out of every 100 men will develop prostate cancer sometime in their lives, making it one of the most common cancers in men. Most cases are diagnosed in the early stages when cancer affects only the prostate. As the disease progresses, prostate cancer can spread to lymph nodes, bones, liver, and other body parts. In the final stages, prostate cancer is often incurable, but some treatments can help lengthen and improve your quality of life. 

Doctors often use the Gleason score and Grade Groups to evaluate prostate cancer as it develops. Cancer cells don’t look the same as healthy cells. If cancer is suspected, your doctor will take a sample (biopsy) to study under a microscope. Cancer cells are then graded based on how similar or different they look compared to healthy cells. The grades typically range between 3 and 5. Low-scoring cancer cells that look more normal are often slow-growing, but higher scored cancer cells are much more likely to be aggressive and spread quickly (metastasize).

The grades from the two most common cell patterns in your biopsy sample are added together. This number is usually between 6 and 10 and is called a Gleason Score. The cancer is then further broken down into Grade Groups 1 through 5 based on your Gleason score. A Gleason score of 6 would be put in Grade Group 1, and a Gleason score of 10 would be in Grade Group 5.

Men with higher Gleason scores and Grade Groups are more likely to develop higher stages of prostate cancer and need immediate treatment. Prostate cancer is then broken down into four stages based on how much cancer has spread.

Stage 1 prostate cancer 

In the first stage, prostate cancer can be difficult to diagnose. The tumor affects a small part of the prostate and can’t be felt during a digital rectal exam (DRE) or seen with imaging tests. In this early stage, the cancer is often only found accidentally during treatment for other health issues.

Stage 2 prostate cancer 

During stage 2, prostate cancer tumors can be felt during a DRE and seen with imaging scans. Cancer may be on one or both sides of your prostate. In stage 2 prostate cancer, the tumor still affects only the prostate and has not yet spread to other body parts.

Stage 3 prostate cancer 

By stage 3, cancer is no longer confined to just the prostate. The cancer begins to spread to nearby body parts, often into the seminal vesicles.

Stage 4 prostate cancer 

Stage 4 is the most severe and final stage of the disease. In this stage, cancer spreads to other body parts like the lymph nodes, bladder, rectum, pelvic walls, or bones.