Men with early prostate cancer are unlikely to have any symptoms, as these only occur when the cancer is large enough to put pressure on the urethra.

In men over the age of 50, the prostate gland often gets larger due to a non-cancerous condition known as benign prostatic hyperplasia or hypertrophy (BPH).

The symptoms of both benign enlargement of the prostate gland and malignant tumours (cancer) are similar and can include any of the following:

• difficulty in passing urine
• passing urine more frequently than usual, especially at night
• pain when passing urine
• blood in the urine (this is not common).

If you have any of the above symptoms it is important that you have them checked by your doctor. But remember, most enlargements of the prostate are not cancer.

Cancer of the prostate is often a slow-growing cancer and symptoms may not occur for many years.