Prostate Cancer

With 19,233 men diagnosed in 2013, prostate cancer is the third most commonly diagnosed cancer in Australia and the most commonly diagnosed cancer in men.

The incidence of prostate cancer varies widely between ethnic populations and countries. The lowest incidence is reported in Asian countries with Tianjin, China having the lowest recorded rate at 1.9 per 100,000 per year. The highest rates are reported in Scandinavia and North America and especially among African-American men (137 per 100,000 per year). The incidence of prostate cancer is growing in most countries. One potential explanation for the rising incidence of prostate cancer may be the increased longevity of men in Western populations with decreased death rates from causes such as cardiovascular disease. However, it is also possible that simply more men are developing prostate cancer due to changes in many cultures such as the adoption of Western style diets high in animal fats as well as other, as yet, uncharacterised environmental factors. The median age of diagnosis with prostate cancer is 72 years with 70% of patients being diagnosed after the age of 65 years. Results from autopsy studies suggest that the majority of men over the age of 85 years harbour microscopic evidence of prostate cancer.

Prostate cancer was responsible for 3102 deaths in Australia in 2014.

Read more about prostate cancer

Active surveillance
Prostate cancer screening
Effects of androgen deprivation
Treatment options
Diet and prostate health
Prostate Cancer

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Risk factors for prostate cancer

Age is the strongest risk factor for diagnosis of prostate cancer as the incidence of prostate cancer rises markedly with age. Less than 0.2% of patients diagnosed with PC are under 45 years while 70% are over 65 years.

Younger patients with prostate cancer do not appear to have more aggressive disease than older patients. However, because of their longer life expectancy, younger patients are more likely to develop symptoms and die of prostate cancer.

A family history of prostate cancer with at least a father  or brother having prostate cancer leads to a 2-3 fold increased risk of being diagnosed with the disease. This risk increases with the number of affected relatives and with the decreased age of the individual.

The possibility of high risk genes such as BRCA2 have been reported.

Dietary factors, in particular diets high in fat, meat and dairy products have been associated with increased risk of prostate cancer. Higher consumption of red meat has been associated with PC risk. In particular, when cooked at high temperatures, red meat has previously been correlated with increased risk of colorectal, bladder and renal cancers. Conversely, higher dietary intake of phytoestrogens as found in soybeans, lycopene as found in tomato based products, selenium and vitamin E have been shown in some studies to be associated with decreased prostate cancer risk.

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