Fewer Men Smoking, Fewer Men Dying from Prostate Cancer

The investigators saw parallel declines in smoking rates and prostate cancer mortality rates in men 35 years and older from a number of states.

From 1999 through 2010, smoking in California declined by 3.5% per year, and prostate cancer mortality rates declined by 2.5%. In Kentucky, smoking declined by 3.0% per year and prostate cancer mortality rates declined by 3.5% per year. In Maryland, smoking declined by 3.0% per year and prostate cancer mortality rates declined by 3.5% per year. In Utah, smoking declined by 3.5% per year and prostate cancer mortality rates declined by 2.1% per year.

Men who currently smoke, rather than men who smoked in the past, were more at risk for having aggressive prostate cancer, recurrent cancer and dying from prostate cancer. The authors wrote that their findings “support population-wide reductions in smoking as a potential strategy to reduce deaths from prostate cancer.”

Their findings are supported by a 2009 review of prospective studies that concluded current cigarette smoking was associated with a 30% increased risk for fatal prostate cancer compared with men who didn’t smoke.2