Hey guys, it’s easy to overlook the fact that you have a prostate gland—until you find out you have prostate cancer (PCa)! Suddenly, that small tucked-away bundle of tissue that produces fluid for orgasm grabs your attention. It occupies your thoughts and feelings as never before. Here come tests, diagnostic bad news, and decisions to be made. Potential perils include anxiety over potential side effects of treatment, hanging over your head like the legendary sword tied by thread.

Thankfully, for most patients these anxieties and threats turn out to be unfounded. There is a subgroup of patients, however, who have grounds for increased worry as they face PCa treatment. These are men who are already on a relatively high level of prescription medications for comorbidities (co-existing conditions) such as cardiovascular disease, diabetes, chronic lung disorders, depression, anxiety, history of blood clots, and pain. For these men, their poor overall health increases their risk of the worst side effect of all: death from their PCa.

New study shows poor health increases PCa mortality

How do we know about the impact of poor overall health on PCa-specific death rates? This bad news is brought to us by a May, 2024 published study from Australia titled “Impact of comorbidities on prostate cancer-specific mortality: A population-based cohort study.”^[i] The researchers are out of nine academic/clinical centers, and their work is a cautionary tale for all men, especially PCa patients.

Their paper opens, “Prostate cancer is mainly a disease of the aging male, hence men with prostate cancer frequently have other chronic health conditions. The presence of comorbidities in prostate cancer patients, either due to the condition itself or its management, are important determinants of survival.” Thus, the authors sought evidence for the impact of ill health on PCa-specific survival.

Their data base involved 15,695 cases of men diagnosed with prostate cancer between 2003 and 2019. To assess their comorbidity score, the team used a medication-based index called Rx-Risk, a validated tool that correlates the prescriptions they were on for common health conditions at one year prior to PCa diagnosis (the score predicts the likelihood of death within a year, thus a measure of ill health).

Findings

Upon analysis, the authors found that patients with a Rx-Risk score of 3 or greater had higher PCa-specific mortality than patients whose risk score was zero. They write, “Men who were using medications for cardiac disorders, chronic airway disease, depression and anxiety, and thrombosis [blood clots] were at increased risk of dying from prostate cancer compared with men not on those medications. … All Rx-Risk score categories and the specific comorbidities were also associated with increased of all-cause mortality [death from any cause].” They concluded that management of comorbidities “may help to improve survival in prostate cancer patients.”

What does this mean for you?

The implications of this study are consistent with all men’s health guidelines. Whether or not you’re ever diagnosed with PCa is almost beside the point. Preserving optimum wellness should be a lifelong principle, and all research points to diet, exercise, stress management, positive relationships, laughter, and a sense of purpose or meaning as key elements toward a long and vigorous life. If you haven’t already heard about the Blue Zones (5 regions on the planet where people routinely live to age 100 or longer with sound bodies and minds), you might be inspired by the 4-part documentary series “Live to 100: Secrets of the Blue Zones” available on Netflix.

If you’re already in peak health, keep it up. Research shows that overall good health helps reduce the odds of getting PCa. If, however, you are on medications for any of the conditions listed above but do not have PCa, talk to your doctor about management strategies that may help you reduce or eliminate the need for drugs—and perhaps even lessen the severity of the conditions. Not only will this serve you well should you ever (heaven forbid) be diagnosed with PCa, it will enhance the probability that you will live your full life span with robust overall health. What could be better?

NOTE: This content is solely for purposes of information and does not substitute for diagnostic or medical advice. Talk to your doctor if you are experiencing pelvic pain, or have any other health concerns or questions of a personal medical nature.

References

[i] Tiruye T, Roder D, FitzGerald LM et al. Impact of comorbidities on prostate cancer-specific mortality: A population-based cohort study. Prostate. 2024 May 26. doi: 10.1002/pros.24750. Epub ahead of print.