Risk factors of prostate cancer

Abstract

Prostate cancer is characterized by high morbidity and mortality rates. According to the World Health Organization data, 1.2 million cases of the disease and 358,000 deaths because of prostate cancer were recorded in 2018. This nosology takes the second place in the structure of oncological morbidity, and the sixth place in the structure of cancer-associated mortality. A large number of works have been devoted to the study of the etiopathogenesis of prostate cancer. In this review, we attempted to summarize some of the results of studies of risk factors for this disease. The article analyzes the results of studies on the possible impact on the development of the disease of both biological factors (age, race, the presence of certain genetic polymorphisms), and lifestyle-related factors (nutrition, obesity, alcohol use, smoking). Despite the urgency of the problem and the huge number of studies conducted, up to date, only for a number of unmodifiable factors, such as age, race, heredity, their unconditional role in the development of prostate cancer have proved. There is no clarity regarding the significance of the role of modifiable, factors, including behavioral, in the development of the disease. The data from the studies are contradictory and not very convincing. Further research in this direction is necessary to get information about the contribution of potential risk factors to the etiopathogenesis of prostate cancer.