Appendectomy and Risk of Prostate Cancer in the Health Professionals Follow-up Study

Area of Science:

• Urology
• Surgical Oncology
• Epidemiology

Background:

• Appendectomy is a frequent surgical procedure for appendicitis.
• Previous research on appendectomy's link to prostate cancer is limited, with some studies suggesting a potential increased risk.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the association between appendectomy and the risk of developing overall, advanced, and lethal prostate cancer.
• To clarify conflicting findings from prior studies on appendectomy and prostate cancer risk.

Main Methods:

• A cohort of 49,104 men from the Health Professionals Follow-up Study was observed from 1986 to 2016.
• Cox proportional hazards models were used to analyze the relationship between appendectomy history and prostate cancer incidence, adjusting for known risk factors.

Main Results:

• No increased risk of overall (HR, 1.01), advanced (HR, 0.99), or lethal (HR, 1.04) prostate cancer was observed in men who had undergone appendectomy compared to those who had not.
• These findings remained consistent across different age strata.

Conclusions:

• This study found no evidence of an association between appendectomy and the risk of overall or clinically significant prostate cancer.
• Appendectomy does not appear to elevate prostate cancer risk in men, even after accounting for multiple confounding factors and long-term follow-up.