Sexual Past Affects Cancer Risk
May 10, 2004(Ivanhoe Newswire) -- Men who have gonorrhea, along with those who have had numerous sexual partners, may be at an increased risk for prostate cancer, according to new research.
Researchers from the University of Michigan Health System in Ann Arbor studied more than 700 black men without prostate cancer and about 130 black men with prostate cancer. Participants were asked about their sexual history. Researchers also documented any history of sexually transmitted diseases among the patients.
Results show men who had more than 25 lifetime sexual partners were 2.5-times more likely to develop prostate cancer than those with five or fewer sexual partners. Men with gonorrhea were also more likely to be diagnosed with prostate cancer. Sixty-five percent of men with prostate cancer reported having gonorrhea, compared to only 53 percent of men without prostate cancer.
Gonorrhea is a bacterial infection that is transmitted through sexual intercourse. Researchers believe the infection triggers cancer-cell growth.
Aruna Sarma, Ph.D., from the University of Michigan Medical School, says, “Although we are unable to show gonorrhea directly causes prostate cancer, we suspect the inflammatory effect of gonorrhea infection may trigger pre-existing cancerous cells to multiply.”
SOURCE: American Urological Association annual meeting in San Francisco, May 8-13, 2004
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