Early puberty increases prostate cancer risk

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https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/entry/ ... 4956fd1da8

Boys who go through puberty early could have an increased risk of developing prostate cancer in later life, a new study has suggested.

Genes associated with early puberty were linked to a raised risk of developing the disease.

Researchers hope to use this information to develop dietary interventions that could help protect teenage boys against prostate cancer in later life.

Prostate cancer is the most common cancer in men in the UK, with over 47,000 new cases each year, and the second most common cancer in men worldwide.

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In the study, which was published in the journal BMC Medicine, researchers analysed genetic data from 2,927 men - 1,136 of whom had prostate cancer and 1,791 who didn't.

They identified genes that could indicate sexual maturation and each man was given a score dependent on how many of these maturity genes were present.

Researchers found that early sexual maturation was associated with increased prostate cancer risk.

It is thought this could be due to the effect of early and prolonged increased levels of growth hormones, which are altered with puberty. However further research is needed to examine this.

Scientists concluded that boys who mature at a later age have a reduced risk of developing prostate cancer - particularly aggressive types of the disease -in later life.