Blood in urine in men and prostate cancer

Urine may look pink, red, tea-coloured, or contain clots. Even a single episode that clears should be reported because the colour cannot show where the bleeding began.

Blood may originate in the kidneys, ureters, bladder, prostate, or urethra. Urinary infection, stones, an enlarged prostate, injury, cancer within the urinary tract, and effects of prostate surgery or radiotherapy are among the possibilities.

Prostate cancer may cause urinary bleeding when disease affects nearby tissues, but the symptom does not reveal the diagnosis by itself. Assessment may include a urine test, blood tests, examination, imaging, or a camera examination of the bladder, depending on the clinical picture.

Contact a clinician promptly for visible blood in urine. Mention burning, fever, side or back pain, difficulty passing urine, clots, recent procedures, prostate treatment, and any episode that has already stopped.

Keep track of the urine colour, timing, and whether bleeding appears throughout the stream. Provide a full list of medicines, including blood thinners. Continue prescribed medicine unless the treating clinician gives different instructions, and do not use extra fluid intake as a substitute for assessment.

Go to emergency care if clots or bleeding prevent urine from passing, the lower abdomen becomes painfully swollen, or bleeding is heavy or persistent. Fever with shaking chills, severe side pain, fainting, confusion, marked weakness, or a rapid heartbeat also calls for urgent assessment.

Urinary blockage can damage the urinary system and may require drainage. If you are unable to urinate, do not wait for a routine clinic appointment or try to manage the blockage at home.

Ask which part of the urinary tract needs investigation, whether infection or a treatment effect is suspected, and what tests can distinguish the possibilities. If you have prostate cancer, discuss whether the bleeding changes treatment plans and whom to contact if clots or retention develop.