The prostate is a small male gland the size of a walnut that sits at the base of the bladder just in front of the bowel. It surrounds the urethra (the tube that urine passes through from the bladder to the penis) and is part of the male reproductive system. The function of the prostate is to provide nutrients to sperm to aid in reproduction.
Prostate cancer is an abnormal growth of cells within the prostate gland. These abnormal or malignant cells grow more rapidly than normal prostate cells. These cells have the potential to break out from the prostate and spread to other parts of the body such as lymph nodes or the bones. When a cancer spreads to other parts of the body it is referred to as a metastasis or a secondary tumour.