Prostate cancer is one of the most common cancers in men and becomes more frequent with age. It develops when cells in the prostate grow uncontrollably, often influenced by male hormones, particularly testosterone. Many tumors grow slowly and may never cause symptoms, while others are aggressive and spread beyond the prostate, especially to bones and lymph nodes.

Risk is strongly linked to age, family history, and genetics. Mutations in genes such as BRCA1, BRCA2 and HOXB13 can increase risk, and certain inherited DNA repair defects can also make tumors more aggressive. Environmental and lifestyle factors, including diet and obesity, may play a role, but their impact is less clearly defined.

Diagnosis relies on a combination of prostate specific antigen (PSA) blood testing, digital rectal examination, imaging, and biopsy. PSA is not cancer specific and can lead to overdiagnosis of low risk tumors, so risk stratification and careful interpretation of PSA trends are crucial.

Treatment depends on stage and aggressiveness. Options range from active surveillance for low risk disease to surgery and radiotherapy with curative intent. Advanced disease is typically treated with androgen deprivation therapy, which lowers or blocks testosterone, often combined with newer hormonal agents, chemotherapy, or targeted therapies. Tumors with specific DNA repair mutations may respond to PARP inhibitors, and radioligand therapies targeting prostate specific markers have emerged for metastatic cancer.

Research is focused on improving early detection, refining risk prediction, identifying molecular subtypes, and developing more precise systemic treatments that extend survival while limiting side effects.