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. 2015 Mar;9(3):1307-1312.
doi: 10.3892/ol.2014.2841. Epub 2014 Dec 31.

Impact of obesity upon prostate cancer-associated mortality: A meta-analysis of 17 cohort studies

Xiaoyi Zhang  1 , Guiqin Zhou  2 , Bo Sun  1 , Guohua Zhao  1 , Dezhong Liu  1 , Jiage Sun  1 , Chuanhai Liu  1 , Hui Guo  1
Affiliations

Impact of obesity upon prostate cancer-associated mortality: A meta-analysis of 17 cohort studies

Xiaoyi Zhang et al. Oncol Lett. 2015 Mar.

Abstract

A number of epidemiological studies have suggested that obesity is associated, albeit inconsistently, with the incidence of prostate cancer (PCa). In order to provide a quantitative assessment of this association, the present study examined the correlation between obesity and the incidence and associated mortalities of PCa in an updated meta-analysis of cohort studies. The cohort studies were identified by searching the EMBASE and MEDLINE databases on January 1, 2014. The summary relative risks (RRs) with 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were calculated using random-effects models. In total, 17 studies, which included 3,569,926 individuals overall, were selected according to predefined inclusion criteria. Based upon the results of the random-effects models, obesity was not significantly correlated with the incidence of PCa (RR, 1.00; 95% CI, 0.95-1.06). However, further analysis revealed that obesity was significantly correlated with an increased risk of aggressive PCa (RR, 1.14; 95% CI, 1.04-1.25). Furthermore, an increased risk of PCa-associated mortality was significantly associated with obesity (RR, 1.24; 95% CI, 1.15-2.33), without any heterogeneity between the studies (I2=0.0%; P=0.847). The present study provides preliminary evidence to demonstrate that obesity is a significant risk factor for aggressive PCa and PCa-specific mortality. The low survival rates observed among obese males with PCa may be a likely explanation for this association.

Keywords: incidence; meta-analysis; mortality; obesity; prospective cohort studies; prostate cancer.

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Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Flow diagram revealing the process of study identification, inclusion and exclusion.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Forest plots revealing the relative risks (RR) of obesity and prostate cancer incidence. CI, confidence interval.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Forest plots revealing the relative risks (RR) of obesity and prostate cancer-specific mortality. CI, confidence interval.
Figure 4
Figure 4
Forest plots revealing the relative risks (RR) of obesity and aggressive prostate cancer incidence. CI, confidence interval.
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