Body mass index in early and middle-late adulthood and risk of localised, advanced and fatal prostate cancer: a population-based prospective study
2011

BMI and Prostate Cancer Risk

Sample size: 36959 publication 10 minutes Evidence: moderate

Author Information

Author(s): Discacciati A, Orsini N, Andersson S-O, Andrén O, Johansson J-E, Wolk A

Primary Institution: Karolinska Institutet

Hypothesis

How does body mass index (BMI) during early and middle-late adulthood affect the risk of localized, advanced, and fatal prostate cancer?

Conclusion

The study found that higher BMI during middle-late adulthood is inversely associated with localized prostate cancer, while showing a dual association with fatal prostate cancer.

Supporting Evidence

  • The study followed 36,959 men over a decade to assess prostate cancer incidence.
  • BMI at age 30 showed a decreased risk for fatal prostate cancer.
  • Higher BMI in middle-late adulthood was linked to lower incidence of localized prostate cancer.

Takeaway

Being overweight when you're older might lower your chances of getting a certain type of prostate cancer, but it could increase your risk of dying from it.

Methodology

A population-based cohort study followed 36,959 Swedish men aged 45-79 years from 1998 to 2008, analyzing the incidence of prostate cancer based on BMI at different ages.

Potential Biases

Potential detection bias due to lower PSA values in obese men may have led to underdiagnosis of prostate cancer.

Limitations

Self-reported weight and height may lead to misclassification, and the observational nature of the study limits causal conclusions.

Participant Demographics

Swedish men aged 45-79 years.

Statistical Information

P-Value

0.06

Confidence Interval

95% CI 0.52–0.92

Statistical Significance

p<0.05

Digital Object Identifier (DOI)

10.1038/bjc.2011.319

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