Blood in semen: what should I do?

So, my mom was crying her eyes out yesterday because she found out Dad has blood in his semen. She’s totally spiraling, convinced it’s definitely prostate cancer (though I didn't see those specific symptoms mentioned in Vilkov's post earlier). Dad finally admitted this has been going on for a while now and he's just... kind of accepted it. Honestly, I’m going to force him to see a doctor if I have to—he's being stubborn, but I'm booking his appointment for tomorrow. In the meantime, does anyone know anything about this? He's 66. It hasn't been causing him any major pain up until now.

hey 🙂

I just had a recent experience at my workplace. A colleague—nearly 60 himself—noticed blood in his semen. He was also having trouble urinating, so unlike your father, he didn't mess around; he went straight to the doctors and insisted on every single test available. Even though all his labs and markers came back within the normal range, he pushed for a prostate biopsy.

Well, he's been stuck in the hospital for three weeks now. He developed sepsis following the procedure, even though his initial results were perfectly fine.

Hematospermia

Kenneth Hernandez67 said:he's been stuck in the hospital for three weeks now... ended up catching sepsis right after an exam, even though all his tests were coming back totally fine.

man, seriously... that's just straight-up bad luck.

My semen isn't its usual color anymore; it’s looking pinkish-red. To be completely honest, I didn't use protection last night, and I'm fairly certain that's what caused this, but aside from the blood in my ejaculate, I'm not experiencing any other issues. There's no stinging, itching, or anything else noticeable. It is worth mentioning that my girlfriend was being pretty rough. All in all, I'm stuck wondering if I should start panicking or just wait a few days to see if it clears up on its own? Has anyone else dealt with something like this? 😢

I witnessed a similar situation once with a boyfriend of mine; it turned out he had suffered a ruptured vein somewhere along the line, which explained everything. Given that your symptoms have persisted for this long, and considering how rough things got with your partner, you might be dealing with a more significant injury or perhaps some sort of inflammatory response. I am certainly not an expert, but I recall reading something about certain STIs manifesting through discoloration in semen. Honestly, you need to see a urologist. Look, it is far better to seek medical attention now before you find yourself facing discharge, swelling, or some other unpleasant complication. It might turn out to be nothing at all, but for your own peace of mind, go get checked out properly.

Thanks for getting back to me. 🙂 I think I misspoke earlier. This isn't a long-term thing; it’s only lasted a single day. I was planning on scheduling an appointment with a urologist, but honestly, I’m holding out hope that it’s just a busted vessel, similar to what happened with your ex. Did he end up needing a prescription for anything, or did the whole thing just clear up on its own? I was thinking about pushing my doctor's visit to next week—mostly because I'd love to avoid the clinic if it's not strictly necessary—but that bit about the discharge has me feeling pretty paranoid. 😢

It occurred during the evening, and by the following morning, there was nothing left of it but perhaps some faint traces of what once was, and certainly nothing more. I found myself contemplating the possibility of pus, just in case the capillary hadn't healed properly—much like what happened in his case—assuming this is an actual injury rather than a simple burst vessel (though he was forty at the time, so the comparison is somewhat flawed), and fearing the potential for infection. Look, I would genuinely advise you to schedule an appointment with a urologist as soon as humanly possible; because if it isn't causing pain now, it almost certainly will if there is an underlying issue, and I highly doubt any such complication would be pleasant. Please don't spiral into a panic; I am well aware that I have a tendency to jump straight to the most catastrophic prognosis, which rarely actually materializes, but for the sake of a peaceful night's sleep and comfortable intimacy, go ahead and get everything checked out. Everything will turn out fine 👍

So, I’ve run into a bit of a situation lately—it’s basically a relapse after a few years of being fine. I noticed some blood in my semen. When I went in for a preventative checkup a few months back—did the whole routine with urine samples, semen analysis, and a urethral swab—everything actually looked totally normal... except for one thing: Ureaplasma urealyticum was flagged at > 10 on 4.

I’m honestly sitting here wondering if those Ureaplasma results could actually be linked to the blood I'm seeing, or if it's just my mind playing tricks on me. What’s really messing with my head is that this is the second time this has happened. The first time around, everything seemed to clear up perfectly and the tests came back clean (exactly like they did back then).

I would really appreciate any advice you guys can give me. How dangerous is this, really? Are there long-term consequences I should be worried about, or any specific steps I should take right now?
I'm pretty stressed out about this, not gonna lie.

Thanks so much for any help you can offer.

Hmm, seeing blood is definitely unpleasant, though I’m not entirely convinced that Ureaplasma alone could cause that—especially at a concentration of 10^4. It’s possible, I suppose, but it really depends on how much bleeding occurred and whether it showed up right after the swab or if it’s been an ongoing issue. Generally speaking, Ureaplasma tends to be a bit more of a headache for men than women when it comes to actual symptoms, but it still needs to be addressed. A level of 10^4 isn't exactly catastrophic, but you’ll most likely be prescribed antibiotics such as Doxycycline or Erythromycin, followed by repeat testing in about two to four months. These kinds of microorganisms can be quite stubborn—it's not uncommon to deal with frequent recurrences and similar nuisances—so keeping your immune system at a 🙂
level is pretty vital.
Edit: If you have a partner, she’ll need to go through the same testing process; and of course, if that little beast shows up in her results, she’ll need treatment too. In the meantime—use condoms.

So, I’m 29 and a half. Woke up this morning and noticed my semen looks... off. Like, orange-ish. I checked it against some white paper and realized there’s definitely blood in there. Honestly? I’m freaking out. My erections are fine, ejaculation feels normal, no issues peeing—nothing. No pain at all. I even went looking for scratches or cuts on my junk, hoping maybe I just nicked myself somewhere and that's where the blood came from, but nothing. It's coming straight from the ejaculate.

Last month, my testicle was hurting pretty bad after sex, but I figured it was just because I’d been edging for like two days straight. The day before this, I spent an hour with my girlfriend without actually finishing (not a medical thing, just how it went), and then again the next morning because I wanted to "build up" for later that night. Each time, I was right on the edge.

Everything seemed totally normal yesterday, and then boom—blood this morning. I’ve always been a bit of a worrier; five years ago, I actually went in for a testicular ultrasound because of some pain. Turned out everything was perfectly fine—it was just a pinched nerve in my groin from hitting the gym too hard.

Right now, though, I am spiraling. I mean, seriously, zero symptoms other than the bloody semen. As for sex, we’re doing it maybe once or twice a week since we work opposite shifts and don't see each other much.

I feel like I’m losing my mind here—I’ve been sitting here for an hour feeling nauseous and breaking out in a cold sweat.

Brian Campbell6 said:So, I’m 29 and a half. Woke up this morning and noticed my semen looks... off. Like, orange-ish. I checked it against some white paper and realized there’s definitely blood in there. Honestly? I’m freaking out. My erections are fine, ejaculation feels normal, no issues peeing—nothing. No pain at all. I even went looking for scratches or cuts on my junk, hoping maybe I just nicked myself somewhere and that's where the blood came from, but nothing. It's coming straight from the ejaculate.

Last month, my testicle was hurting pretty bad after sex, but I figured it was just because I’d been edging for like two days straight. The day before this, I spent an hour with my girlfriend without actually finishing (not a medical thing, just how it went), and then again the next morning because I wanted to "build up" for later that night. Each time, I was right on the edge.

Everything seemed totally normal yesterday, and then boom—blood this morning. I’ve always been a bit of a worrier; five years ago, I actually went in for a testicular ultrasound because of some pain. Turned out everything was perfectly fine—it was just a pinched nerve in my groin from hitting the gym too hard.

Right now, though, I am spiraling. I mean, seriously, zero symptoms other than the bloody semen. As for sex, we’re doing it maybe once or twice a week since we work opposite shifts and don't see each other much.

I feel like I’m losing my mind here—I’ve been sitting here for an hour feeling nauseous and breaking out in a cold sweat.

http://www.medicinenet.com/blood_in_semen/article.htm
Look, it's most likely nothing serious. It happens, and there are plenty of different possible causes. Most of the time it's benign and just clears up on its own. You might just have some minor inflammation somewhere in your urogenital tract that manifested this way.

Should I head straight to the doctor right now, or just wait a few days and see?

Honestly, I’m freaking out—I nearly lost my lunch from a panic attack when I saw this.

Brian Campbell6 said:Should I head straight to the doctor right now, or just wait a few days and see?

Honestly, I’m freaking out—I nearly lost my lunch from a panic attack when I saw this.

Look, if you're spiraling this hard, just go get it handled. Go get some blood work and a urinalysis done just to rule out any kind of infection, and make sure they run tests on your ureters too. It might feel like overkill, but honestly, some private clinics will just take a superficial swab from the tip and call it a day when you really need an ejaculate culture. Do a little digging online and just get it over with. If you're worried about the discomfort or the pain, suck it up; it's better than sitting there worrying.

The worst part is now I’m stuck wondering if I should just try to take care of things myself or actually go for it with a partner—just to see if everything still works. But honestly? It’s pretty hard to get anything going when you’re dealing with this much anxiety and pressure hanging over your head.

Brian Campbell6 said:The worst part is now I’m stuck wondering if I should just try to take care of things myself or actually go for it with a partner—just to see if everything still works. But honestly? It’s pretty hard to get anything going when you’re dealing with this much anxiety and pressure hanging over your head.

Look, you need to pull yourself together, stop the theatrics, and look at this situation with some actual maturity and realism. Here's the deal: you saw blood in your semen, so now you're going to find out why, and if there's an issue, you'll fix it. Take the first step and go see your primary care physician.
The odds of it being cancer—which is clearly what's eating you alive right now—are incredibly, incredibly low. It is far more likely that you picked up a bacterial infection that's currently throwing a tantrum in your system. 😉

A friend's dad went through something similar... turned out they were just some benign growths in the urethra.

Brian Campbell6 said:So, I’m 29 and a half. Woke up this morning and noticed my semen looks... off. Like, orange-ish. I checked it against some white paper and realized there’s definitely blood in there. Honestly? I’m freaking out. My erections are fine, ejaculation feels normal, no issues peeing—nothing. No pain at all. I even went looking for scratches or cuts on my junk, hoping maybe I just nicked myself somewhere and that's where the blood came from, but nothing. It's coming straight from the ejaculate.

Last month, my testicle was hurting pretty bad after sex, but I figured it was just because I’d been edging for like two days straight. The day before this, I spent an hour with my girlfriend without actually finishing (not a medical thing, just how it went), and then again the next morning because I wanted to "build up" for later that night. Each time, I was right on the edge.

Everything seemed totally normal yesterday, and then boom—blood this morning. I’ve always been a bit of a worrier; five years ago, I actually went in for a testicular ultrasound because of some pain. Turned out everything was perfectly fine—it was just a pinched nerve in my groin from hitting the gym too hard.

Right now, though, I am spiraling. I mean, seriously, zero symptoms other than the bloody semen. As for sex, we’re doing it maybe once or twice a week since we work opposite shifts and don't see each other much.

I feel like I’m losing my mind here—I’ve been sitting here for an hour feeling nauseous and breaking out in a cold sweat.

There's a high probability this is prostatitis. See a doctor. It might be stress-related, but since I went through something identical back in 2011 due to stupidly edging, and ended up with blood in my ejaculate, it's classic prostate inflammation. Get to a urologist. You'll probably need a fibrinogen test and some other lab work I can't recall right now.

Look, holding back an orgasm is actually bad for your prostate health, and you really shouldn't be doing that

Also, seeing blood in your semen can sometimes just be from being a little too aggressive when you're masturbating

Larry Walker24 said:Look, holding back an orgasm is actually bad for your prostate health, and you really shouldn't be doing that

Also, seeing blood in your semen can sometimes just be from being a little too aggressive when you're masturbating

Damn, my doctor isn't even coming in until Monday for his rounds, and I ended up missing my shift for the coverage too.

I don't really do that often—honestly, this is maybe the second time in my life I've ever held back. And it definitely wasn't because I was being too aggressive or anything. I mean, what do you have to do to actually cause bleeding? That seems extreme.

I’d love to just take care of things right now to see if the situation clears up, but I can't relax enough to even think about it with this blood hanging over my head. Honestly, under this kind of stress, I wouldn't be getting up for anything in the world.