According to a new study released in the November issue of American Journal of Epidemiology metabolic syndrome may be linked to prostate cancer risk. The study was based on information from about 16,000 men in Norway over more than 25 years.
The study was started in the 1970's, and enrolled men in their forties who had no previous diagnosis of prostate cancer or metabolic syndrome.
Prostate cancer is the number 3 cause of cancer related deaths in men, with Lung cancer and Colorectal Cancer taking spot number one and two respectively. Metabolic syndrome is a condition characterized by high blood lipids, high blood pressure, high blood insulin, and central obesity.
Over the study period researchers found that men who had 2 or more characteristics of metabolic syndrome as mentioned above were more likely to develop prostate cancer. The increased risk was as much as 50 percent in some cases.
Other factors which increased the risk for prostate cancer in this study were age, BMI, and sedentary work.
The authors feel that this study supports a connection between metabolic syndrome and prostate cancer. The mechanism may be via IGF-1 (insulin like growth factor), which has been shown in previous studies to interact with prostate tissue, and levels are abnormal in metabolic sydrome.
Expect more studies in the future.
Posted by Dr. Christina Gutierrez on November 7, 2006 03:54 PM
