The diagnosis and treatment of benign prostatic obstruction (BPO) is based on a number of well-known lower urinary tract symptoms (LUTS) feared by all ageing males with functional testes. The ascent of modern urology turned this disease from lethal into an annoying but treatable health problem in the previous century. We are able to relieve the great majority of patients from their bothersome symptoms to a respectable quality of life by medication or removal of the obstructive part of the enlarged prostate. We can be proud of some progress made in the new millennium to reach a correct diagnosis and subsequent choice of treatment aiming for quality of life and cost-efficiency for public health. Still it remains symptomatic treatment and we expect the new generation of urologists to close some gaps in our knowledge on the regulation of prostatic growth to focus on prevention and elimination of the disease in the foreseeable future.
Asian journal of urology. 2017 Mar 30 [Epub]
Johan Braeckman, Louis Denis
Department of Urology, UZ Brussel, Brussels, Belgium., Oncology Center Antwerp (OCA), Antwerp, Belgium.