Cancer Prostate Cancer Diagnosis Getting a Prostate Ultrasound for Prostate Cancer By Matthew Schmitz, MD Matthew Schmitz, MD LinkedIn Matthew Schmitz, MD, is a professional radiologist who has worked extensively with prostate cancer patients and their families. Learn about our editorial process Updated on February 09, 2023 Medically reviewed by Jamin Brahmbhatt, MD Medically reviewed by Jamin Brahmbhatt, MD Facebook LinkedIn Jamin Brahmbhatt, MD, is a board-certified urologist and Chief of Surgery at Orlando Health South Lake Hospital. Learn about our Medical Expert Board Print A prostate ultrasound is done to measure the size of your prostate and to look for abnormalities within the prostate gland. The ultrasound can be also be used to help perform a biopsy of the prostate. Theo Heimann / Getty Images Prostate cancer usually grows over time, staying within the prostate gland at first, where it may not cause serious harm. While some types of prostate cancer grow slowly and may need minimal or no treatment, other types are aggressive and can spread quickly. The earlier you catch your prostate cancer, the better your chance of successful treatment. If your healthcare provider suspects you might have prostate cancer they will conduct a number of tests which may include a prostate-specific antigen (PSA) test, a digital exam of your prostate, and or imaging in the form of an ultrasound or MRI. If your blood work reveals a high PSA or your prostate feels abnormal on digital rectal exam then the ultrasound will be done at the time of biopsy to help with the diagnosis. Symptoms of Prostate Cancer Advanced prostate cancer can cause signs and symptoms including: Trouble urinatingDecreased force in the stream of urineBlood in the semenDiscomfort in the pelvic areaBone painErectile dysfunction Getting a Prostate Ultrasound Ultrasound imaging uses high-frequency sound waves to create a picture of the prostate. Ultrasounds are used early in the diagnostic process to determine whether your prostate is enlarged or has an abnormal or asymmetrical shape. If your prostate is enlarged without any other characteristics of cancer, you may just have benign prostate hyperplasia. As you age, your prostate increases in size. An ultrasound can help your healthcare provider determine if your prostate size increase is normal and age-related or a sign of prostate cancer. Ultrasound is also used very frequently during a prostate biopsy to guide the healthcare provider to biopsy exactly where needed. In order to produce an image of the prostate, a thin ultrasound probe is inserted a short distance into the rectum. This probe emits high-frequency sound waves and detects their return. These sound waves can then be detected and measured as they reflect off of various structures inside the body. When sound waves echo off of an object, they change slightly. The ultrasound machine can interpret these very tiny changes in the character of the returning sound wave to make determinations about the object (such as the prostate) that it has hit. Different types of structures reflect or “echo” sound waves differently. These differences can be detected and an image produced that shows where one structure stops and another starts. This allows for a detailed view of the area near the ultrasound probe. Measurements can be made about the size and shape of the object, how far from the probe it is, and what its makeup is. For instance, ultrasound can determine whether an object is solid, full of liquid, or a little of both. As the ultrasound is being performed, the image that is produced is in real-time. This means your healthcare provider can take a biopsy or do other procedures while an ultrasound image is being produced. 4 Sources Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read our editorial process to learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy. Chen FK, Abreu ALDC, Palmer SL. Utility of Ultrasound in the Diagnosis, Treatment, and Follow-up of Prostate Cancer: State of the Art. Journal of Nuclear Medicine. 2016;57(Supplement_3). doi:10.2967/jnumed.116.177196 Leslie SW, Soon-Sutton TL, Sajjad H. Prostate Cancer. [Updated 2019 Oct 8]. In: StatPearls [Internet]. Treasure Island (FL): StatPearls Publishing; 2019 Jan-. Lopes PM, Sepúlveda L, Ramos R, Sousa P. The role of transrectal ultrasound in the diagnosis of prostate cancer: new contributions. Radiol Bras. 2015;48(1):7–11. doi:10.1590/0100-3984.2013.0010 Mitterberger M, Horninger W, Aigner F. Ultrasound of the prostate. Cancer Imaging. 2010;10(1):40–48. Published 2010 Mar 3. doi:10.1102/1470-7330.2010.0004 By Matthew Schmitz, MD Matthew Schmitz, MD, is a professional radiologist who has worked extensively with prostate cancer patients and their families. See Our Editorial Process Meet Our Medical Expert Board Share Feedback Was this page helpful? Thanks for your feedback! What is your feedback? Other Helpful Report an Error Submit