Metabolic Syndrome and Physical Inactivity May Be Shared Etiological Agents of Prostate Cancer and Coronary Heart Diseases
by
, , and
Antonio Cicione
1,†, 
Aldo Brassetti
2,*,†
,
Riccardo Lombardo
1, 
Antonio Franco
1,
Beatrice Turchi
1,
Simone D’Annunzio
1,
Antonio Nacchia
1,
Andrea Tubaro
1,
Giuseppe Simone
2 and
Cosimo De Nunzio
1 1
Department of Urology, Sant’Andrea Hospital, Via di Grottarossa 1035, 00189 Rome, Italy
2
Department of Urology, IRCCS “Regina Elena” National Cancer Institute, Via Elio Chianesi 53, 00144 Rome, Italy
*
Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
†
These authors contributed equally to this work.
Cancers 2022, 14(4), 936; https://doi.org/10.3390/cancers14040936
Submission received: 10 December 2021
/
Revised: 4 February 2022
/
Accepted: 10 February 2022
/
Published: 14 February 2022
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Physical Activity and Cancer Care)
Simple Summary
As metabolic syndrome (MetS) and a sedentary lifestyle are associated with an increased risk of prostate cancer (PCa) and cardiovascular diseases (CVDs), the 2 conditions may share common causes. We investigated the association between CVDs and PCa. Clinical data from patients undergone prostate biopsy were collected, physical activity (PA) was assessed and coronary heart diseases (CHDs) recorded. PCa was diagnosed in 395/955 men and 238 were aggressive tumors. Although CHDs were more common among PCa-patients (9.4% vs. 7.5%) the difference was not statistically significant and no difference was observed between low- and high-grade subgroups (9.5% vs. 9.2%). PA significantly reduced the risk of PCa diagnosis and aggressiveness while MetS only increased the risk of being diagnosed with cancer. CHDs were associated neither with tumor diagnosis nor aggressiveness. MetS and PA are strong predictors of PCa. We failed to prove a significant association between PCa and CHDs.
Abstract
As metabolic syndrome (MetS) and a sedentary lifestyle have been associated with an increased risk of developing both prostate cancer (PCa) and cardiovascular diseases (CVDs), the 2 conditions may share a common etiology. We aimed at investigating the association between CVDs and PCa. A retrospective analysis was performed. Our dataset on patients undergone systematic prostate biopsy was searched for histopathologic and clinical data. The physical activity (PA) scale for the elderly (PASE) was collected. Coronary heart diseases (CHDs) were recorded. Prognostic Grade Group ≥3 tumors were defined as high-grade (HG). The association between MetS, PA, CHDs and PCa was assessed using logistic regression analyses. Data on 955 patients were collected; 209 (22%) presented with MetS, 79 (8%) with CHDs. PCa was diagnosed in 395 (41.3%) men and 60% (n = 238) presented with an high-grade tumor. CHDs were more common among PCa-patients (9.4% vs. 7.5%; p = 0.302) but the difference was not statistically significant. No difference was observed between low- and high-grade subgroups (9.5% vs. 9.2%; p = 0.874). PASE independently predicted PCa diagnosis (OR: 0.287; p = 0.001) and HG-PCa (OR: 0.165; p = 0.001). MetS was an independent predictor of HG-PCa only (OR: 1.50; 95% CI: 1.100–2.560; p = 0.023). CHDs were not associated with tumor diagnosis and aggressiveness.
