PROSTRATE CANCER RISK FACTORS

Many people think prostate cancer is a disease which affects only older men. However though the majority of prostate cancer sufferers are older, the disease can strike at men of any age.

Prostate cancer is one of the common cancers that affect men and the incidence of suffers is higher than many people realize, so it's important that not only men, but their partners are aware of the dangers and implications regarding this disease.

So what are the risk factors for Prostate cancer, how will you know if you are at a higher risk of developing the disease?

The first major risk factor is age. Prostate cancer mainly affects those in the older age bracket with approximately two thirds of diagnosed cases being diagnosed in men over the age of 65. Men who are aged under 50 have a reduced risk of developing prostate cancer, though these risks do rise depending on their overall health weight etc.

Race also plays an important part when looking at men's susceptibility to developing prostate cancer. Research has shown that African American men are much more likely to develop the disease than Caucasian men which the percentage rate being as high as 60% extra risks. African Americans are also more likely to die from prostate cancer, however it can be argued that possibly many of them do not have as much access to medical facilities as many Caucasian men. Hispanics face about the same risk as Caucasian men with Asian men showing the lower risk.

Your place of residence can also be a deciding factor on whether you develop prostate cancer or not. If you live in North America or Southwestern Europe, unfortunately your risk of developing prostate cancer rises more than if you live in other parts of the world.

Heredity is also an important factor in the risk of developing prostate cancer. If your father, brother, uncle etc has developed the disease, then your chances of also developing prostate cancer rise.

Your diet is also an important risk factor. If you eat a lot of red meat and dairy products your chances of developing prostate cancer rise slightly, it rises even more if you are overweight especially if you have any accompanying illnesses such as diabetes, high blood pressure or heart disease.

If you lead a very sedentary life and take very little exercise this will predispose you to prostate cancer. Research has shown that men who take a regular amount of exercise degree the risk especially as they get older.

Finally you need to be wary if you have had a vasectomy. Some studies have proved a link between a vasectomy and prostate cancer though this has not been proved conclusively.