Prostate cancer epidemiology and demographics
Editor-In-Chief: C. Michael Gibson, M.S., M.D. [1]
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Overview
Epidemiology and Demographics
Age
Prostate cancer develops most frequently in men over fifty. This cancer can occur only in men, as the prostate is exclusively of the male reproductive tract. It is the most common type of cancer in men in the United States, where it is responsible for more male deaths than any other cancer, except lung cancer.
Race
According to the American Cancer Society, prostate cancer is least common among Asian men and most common among black men, with figures for white men in-between.[1][2] However, these high rates may be affected by increasing rates of detection.[3]
Prevalence in Developed Countries
- Rates of prostate cancer vary widely across the world. Although the rates vary widely between countries, it is least common in South and East Asia, more common in Europe, and most common in the United States.[4]
- In the United Kingdom it is also the second most common cause of cancer death after lung cancer, where around 35,000 cases are diagnosed every year and of which around 10,000 die of it. However, many men who develop prostate cancer never have symptoms, undergo no therapy, and eventually die of other causes. That is because malignant neoplasms of the prostate are, in most cases, slow-growing, and because most of those affected are over 60. Hence they often die of causes unrelated to the prostate cancer, such as heart/circulatory disease, pneumonia, other unconnected cancers or old age.
Many factors, including genetics and diet, have been implicated in the development of prostate cancer. The Prostate Cancer Prevention Trial found that finasteride reduces the incidence of prostate cancer rate by 30%. There had been a controversy about this also increasing the risk of more aggressive cancers, but more recent research showed this was not the case.[5][6]
References
- ↑ Overview: Prostate Cancer—What Causes Prostate Cancer? American Cancer Society (2006-05-02). Retrieved on 2007-04-05
- ↑ Prostate Cancer FAQs. State University of New York School of Medicine Department of Urology (2006-08-31). Retrieved on 2007-04-05
- ↑ Potosky A, Miller B, Albertsen P, Kramer B (1995). "The role of increasing detection in the rising incidence of prostate cancer". JAMA. 273 (7): 548&ndash, 52. doi:10.1001/jama.273.7.548. PMID 7530782.
- ↑ "IARC Worldwide Cancer Incidence Statistics—Prostate". JNCI Cancer Spectrum. Oxford University Press. December 19, 2001. Retrieved on 2007-04-05 through the Internet Archive
- ↑ Gine Kolata (June 15, 2008). "New Take on a Prostate Drug, and a New Debate". NY Times. Retrieved 2008-06-15.
- ↑ Potosky A, Miller B, Albertsen P, Kramer B (2008). "Finasteride Does Not Increase the Risk of High-Grade Prostate Cancer: A Bias-Adjusted Modeling Approach". Cancer Prevention Research. Published Online First on May 18, 2008 as 10.1158/1940-6207.CAPR-08-0092: 174. doi:10.1158/1940-6207.CAPR-08-0092.