Cigarette smoking in relation to fatal prostate cancer

A recent study at Center for Health Research, Portland, Oregon, has reported data from a case analysis study conducted in four health maintenance organizations.

Researchers were examining associations between a range of medical and behavioral characteristics and fatal prostate cancer. They investigated 768 health plan members who died of prostate cancer between 1997 and 2001. These cases were randomly matched against 929 “controls” from the health plan membership on the basis of health plan, age, race, and pattern of health plan membership.

Anthropometric characteristics, as well as personal histories of benign prostatic hypertrophy, transurethral prostatectomy, cancer, diabetes, prostatitis, hypertension, and vasectomy were largely similar for cases and controls.

Study authors have concluded the men who died from prostate cancer were 1.5 times more likely than the controls to have been cigarette smokers. The observed increase in risk associated with recent cigarette smoking is consistent with the findings of several other studies. However, in contrast with some reports, they observed no connection between fatal prostate cancer and some prior health conditions or measures of body size.