Obesity and prostate cancer mortality

It has long been known that obesity modestly increases the risk of prostate cancer mortality. Only recently, however, have studies examined whether this association is due to an increased risk of aggressive disease and/or worse outcomes following initial diagnosis and treatment. This distinction is important, because if obesity increases the risk of metastasis and death following treatment, weight loss could be an effective adjunct treatment. We now have good evidence that obesity increases the risk of aggressive prostate cancer, but reduces the risk of low-grade, nonaggressive cancer. In addition, several studies have found that obesity increases the risk of biochemical recurrence following prostatectomy; however, the few studies that have examined more definitive end points, metastases and death, have been less consistent. Furthermore, there are no studies that have examined whether weight loss after diagnosis favorably affects prostate cancer outcome. While accepting the current limitations in our knowledge base, it is our opinion that it is appropriate for physicians to counsel their patients to lose weight following prostate cancer diagnosis and motivate this change in behavior by emphasising the likely benefit of improving long-term outcome.