My senior dog's enlarged prostate is painful. Could it be cancer?
Updated On September 23rd, 2025
Pet's info: Dog | Pug | Male | unneutered | 10 years and 3 months old | 21 lbs
My vet thinks my 10 yr old male pug has prostate cancer because he doesn't have fever, strains when defeating, and has diarrhea. The vet said the prostate was enlarged greatly, and sore to the touch. He thinks if it was benign it wouldn't be sore to the touch. The dog has no blood in urine or stool. What do you feel like the chances are that it's really cancer? The dog acted fine three days ago, two nights ago he started dribbling diarrhea everywhere, and acting as if he was constipated.
5 Answers
Most Helpful Answer
Published on August 16th, 2017
Unfortunately prostate problems are very common in intact male dogs, and there is a chance he could have prostate cancer. Without seeing Cooper in person, I can't say for sure what his chances are that it's cancer, but it certainly would be a differential for me in in a senior, intact dog. Dogs are also very stoic about pain and illness, and a lot of times they are quite ill before showing any outward signs. That means they can be acting fine one day, and then be quite ill the next day. Keep in mind as well that just because you don't see visible blood in his urine, it doesn't mean blood isn't present in microscopic amounts. The next steps would be a urine analysis, abdominal x-rays and/or ultrasound to visualize the prostate, and a prostate biopsy. These tests will help confirm if Cooper has cancer, and I would speak to your vet about doing them. I hope this helps!
1Pet Parents found this answer helpful
Related Answers from Veterinarians
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Published on
I am sorry to hear about Cooper's prostate problems! I think there are also chances this could be something other than cancer such as a prostatitis or a prostatic abscess. I would recommend ultrasound of the prostate and potentially aspirate or prostatic flushing to help determine if cancer is present. Antibiotic treatment can help these other causes of prostatic enlargement and pain, so it is worth trying to find out with more certainty what is going on!
1Pet Parents found this answer helpful
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Published on October 1st, 2017
This sounds like there is a problem with the circulation to the prepuce (skin overly his penis). I would make sure the veterinarian does a rectal exam and plapates his prostate. You can also have them do an X-ray or ultrasound of his abdomen to check for an enlarged prostate, lymph nodes or to see if there is a tumor. They can also check his spine to see if he has spinal arthritis. Although I don't think arthritis would cause the skin swelling. They can also prescribe pain medication to keep Odie comfortable. If you are not getting a diagnosis have your veterinarian refer you to an internal medicine specialist. Due to his age and symptoms I am very concerned and want you to take him for further tests so they can find the cause and start treatment. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach to help you care for Odie.
2Pet Parents found this answer helpful
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Published on September 25th, 2017
Hi and thank you for reaching out to Pet Coach. I am sorry to hear about Clint. There are a few ways to diagnose an enlarged prostate - physical exam, xray, and ultrasound. You did not specify how this was diagnosed, however if it was via ultrasound then the doctor may have been able to give you a better idea if the prostate appeared like it had cancer or infection. An infection is usually diagnosed concurrently with a urinary tract infection and treated with antibiotics for many, many weeks. In an older dog, like Clint, I would be concerned about prostate cancer, but do not have the details based on your description to make comments about this. If Clint has not yet had an ultrasound performed of his prostate, I would highly recommend this test. It will give you many more specific answers for him. I understand Clint may be difficult to get medications into him. You could ask his doctor about an option for a long-acting antibiotic injection (called convenia) to see if this even applies to his situation (not sure based on your description). I would recommend to definitely NOT put the medications into his food as we do not want to deter him from eating. The fastest, most effective way is to just open his mouth and put the pill down at the back of his throat. Follow with a small amount of water in a syringe to get it down. The staff at Clint's veterinary clinic can show you easily how to get this done for him. Please let us know if you have any further questions. I hope he is feeling better soon.
1Pet Parents found this answer helpful
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Published on November 22nd, 2016
The clinical picture you described is unfortunately compatible with a prostatic cancer, most likely malignant (most common type is carcinoma). Severe infection and inflammation is still possible, but usually response to antibiotics is pretty quick. A sampling of the prostate will confirm this suspicion (different procedures for that depending on your veterinarian's skills). I am happy to discuss further details in other posts on the forum or if you request a consultation.
1Pet Parents found this answer helpful
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