Prostate Removal

Prostate Removal : Glossary

Here are definitions of medical terms related to prostate removal.

Abdomen: The portion of the body that contains the liver and gallbladder, pancreas, small and large intestines, kidneys, ureters, bladder, and other organs.

Androgen ablation therapy: The administration of the hormone testosterone, or a chemically related hormone, in an attempt to reduce the size of an enlarged prostate gland.

Anesthesia: A substance given to a patient before a surgical operation or procedure to prevent pain from being felt.

Antibiotic: A chemical agent derived from a bacterium, a fungus, or synthetically that either kills bacteria or inhibits their growth.

Anus: The opening at the end of the rectum where solid waste leaves the body.

Benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH): A noncancerous condition in which an enlarged prostate gland pushes against the bladder and urethra, obstructing the flow of urine.

Bladder: The sac-like organ of the urinary tract located in the lower portion of the abdomen which stores urine prior to its elimination from the body.

Catheter: A tube inserted through the urethra of the penis to the bladder, where it can drain urine from the body when urination has been significantly impaired.

Clinical trial: A controlled medical research study that evaluates the effectiveness of new drugs or treatments, compared to traditional drugs or treatments and to placebo (a pill or treatment known to have no measurable effect on health).

Dry orgasm: Sexual climax or orgasm without the release of semen from the urethra to the outside.

Ejaculate: The semen discharged from the penis during an orgasm.

Ejaculation: The discharge of seminal fluid containing sperm cells from the penis during sexual stimulation and orgasm.

Erection: A hardening of the penis usually caused by sexual arousal but also occurring during sleep or as the result of physical stimulation.

Foley catheter: A device used when continuous drainage of urine from the bladder is desired, as in surgery.

Impotence: The inability to achieve or sustain an erection.

Incision: A cut made through the skin during surgery.

Lymph nodes: Clusters of small glands of the lymphatic system scattered at strategic locations throughout the body. Lymph nodes filter out foreign materials, thereby removing them as threats to the body, and store specialized white blood cells as part of the body defense mechanism.

Metastasis: The spread of cancer cells from one part of the body to another through the blood and lymph.

Mortality: The death rate for a given unit of population, usually per 1,000 persons.

Orgasm: A series of strong, involuntary contractions of the muscles of the genitals experienced as pleasurable and set off by a heightened level of sexual excitation.

Palpation: A technique in which the examiner determines the texture, size, consistency, and location of certain parts of the body through the sense of touch.

Pelvis: The lower portion of the abdomen, located between the hip bones.

Percutaneous prostate cryoablation: The use of special probes inserted into the prostate gland through the skin in order to freeze and destroy cancerous tissue without affecting surrounding organs.

Perineum: In a man, the region between the scrotum and anus.

Prostate gland: A walnut-shaped gland of the male reproductive system that is located just below the bladder. This gland provides almost one-quarter of the total volume of semen released during ejaculation.

Prostate-specific antigen (PSA): A protein secreted only by the prostate gland, which may be found in increased concentrations in the blood of men who have prostate cancer or benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH).

Prostatectomy: A surgical operation that removes part or all of the prostate gland.

Prostate cancer: A disease in which abnormal tumor cells develop in the prostate gland and may spread to other parts of the body, including the bones.

Radical prostatectomy: The surgical removal of the entire prostate gland along with some of the surrounding tissues.

Rectum: Less than a foot long, the last part of the colon or large intestine that ends at the anal opening.

Resection: The removal of a significant part of an organ or structure by surgically cutting it away from surrounding tissue.

Retrograde ejaculation: The movement of semen in a backward path into the bladder, rather than directly into the urethra and out of the body.

Retropubic: Behind the pubic bones of the pelvis.

Scrotum: The double sac of skin behind the penis that encloses the testes, or testicles.

Semen: A fluid comprised of secretions and cells produced by the prostate gland and other sex glands and the testes that leave the penis during ejaculation; also called seminal fluid.

Seminal vesicles: A pair of reproductive glands in men located near the bladder that may be examined to determine whether cancer cells from the prostate gland may have spread.

Sterility: In men, the inability to fertilize an egg cell and father a child.

Suprapubic: Above the pubic bones of the pelvis.

Testes: The male reproductive glands located in the scrotum that produce the sperm cells and secrete the male reproductive hormone testosterone; also called testicles.

Testosterone: The male hormone produced by the testicles; it is responsible for the development of a man’s reproductive organs and influences a man’s sex drive.

TNM grading system: One of the grading systems currently used to evaluate the clinical stage of tumors that originate in the prostate gland.

Transrectal ultrasound probe: A medical instrument placed in the rectum that emits high-energy waves that are reflected back to the source, providing images of internal organs and structures.

TUIP (transurethral incision of the prostate): A surgical procedure in which the urethra is widened by making a few cuts in the prostate gland and bladder neck, without removing tissue surgically.

Tumor: An abnormal mass of tissue that results from uncontrolled cell division, which may remain benign (contained) or become malignant (cancerous) and spread to other parts of the body.

TURP (transurethral resection of the prostate): A surgical procedure to treat BPH in which pieces of prostate tissue that are constricting the urethra are cut loose and flushed from the body.

Urethra: In a man, the tube through which urine or semen pass as they leave the body during urination or ejaculation.

Urinary incontinence: The inability to adequately control urination, so that urination occurs more or less involuntarily and at inappropriate times.

Urinary tract: The organs of the urinary system that include the kidneys, ureters, bladder, and urethra.

Urologist: A doctor who specializes in diseases of the urinary organs in women and of the urinary and sex organs in men.

Watchful waiting: A form of treatment in which a condition is monitored closely but no therapy is given; is often used in cases where disease is present but is advancing very slowly.