Background:Experimental data convincingly propose the toxic metal cadmium as a prostate carcinogen.
Cadmium is widely dispersed into the environment and, consequently, food is contaminated.
Methods:A population-based cohort of 41 089 Swedish men aged 45-79 years was followed prospectively from 1998 through 2009 to assess the association between food frequency questionnaire-based estimates of dietary cadmium exposure (at baseline, 1998) and incidence of prostate cancer (3085 cases, of which 894 were localised and 794 advanced) and through 2008 for prostate cancer mortality (326 fatal cases).
Results:Mean dietary cadmium exposure was 19 μg per day±s.d. 3.7. Multivariable-adjusted dietary cadmium exposure was positively associated with overall prostate cancer, comparing extreme tertiles; rate ratio (RR) 1.13 (95% confidence interval (CI): 1.03-1.24). For subtypes of prostate cancer, the RR was 1.29 (95% CI: 1.08-1.53) for localised, 1.05 (95% CI: 0.87-1.25) for advanced, and 1.14 (95% CI: 0.86-1.51) for fatal cases. No statistically significant difference was observed in the multivariable-adjusted risk estimates between tumour subtypes (P(heterogeneity)=0.27). For localised prostate cancer, RR was 1.55 (1.16-2.08) among men with a small waist circumference and RR 1.45 (1.15, 1.83) among ever smokers.
Conclusion: Our findings provide support that dietary cadmium exposure may have a role in prostate cancer development.
Written by:
Julin B, Wolk A, Johansson JE, Andersson SO, Andrén O, Akesson A. Are you the author?
Unit of Nutritional Epidemiology, The Institute of Environmental Medicine, Karolinska Institutet, Box 210, 171 77 Stockholm, Sweden.
Reference: Br J Cancer. 2012 Aug 21;107(5):895-900.
doi: 10.1038/bjc.2012.311
PubMed Abstract
PMID: 22850555
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