PROSTATE CANCER RISKS FACTORS

Over the last 20 years, a number of studies have been conducted to assess the various effects of the environment, diet, drugs and supplements on the development of this type of cancer. It is generally agreed  on, that a higher intake of meat and animal fats, as well as smoking may increase the risk of prostate cancer. Similarly, a lack of vegetables and fruit, vitamin D or excess calcium may contribute to prostate cancer.

What has been shown, however, is that family history (or the presence of prostate cancer in a relative) is associated with an increased incidence of prostate cancer, suggesting a genetic predisposition. According to one study*, the odds of high-risk prostate cancer at age 65 were 11.4% (versus a population risk of 1.4%) for men whose father and two brothers had been diagnosed with prostate cancer. This means that if you have one direct relative (most often your father) who has prostate cancer, your risk of getting prostate cancer is 2 times higher, and if you have two or more relatives your risk is up to 11 times higher. In hereditary prostate cancer, the initial onset of the disease tends to be six to seven years earlier, however, the aggressiveness and course of the disease are not different in any other way.

If you or a relative develop prostate cancer, talk to your doctor about screening options for other men in your family. Another important factor is age – with increasing age, the number of diagnosed cancers also increases. Prostate cancer is most commonly detected in men aged 65 to 79. However, due to the slow growth of most types of prostate cancer, older patients are also more likely to have their life expectancy unaffected by prostate cancer – in layman’s terms, ‘the patient dies with prostate cancer but not from it’.