Higher insulin is a major risk factor for prostate cancer

An important paper was just published in the journal Cancer Epidemiology that provides further evidence of insulin as a tumor promoter in prostate cancer. The authors state:

"A higher insulin level has been linked to the risk of prostate cancer promotion...the insulin hypothesis was tested once more prospectively in men with a benign prostatic disorder."

They proceeded by following 389 patients who had lower urinary tract symptoms without prostate cancer over 8-12 years. There were notable differences between the 44 who developed prostate cancer and the rest who didn't:

""Men with prostate cancer diagnosis had a higher systolic and diastolic blood pressure, were more obese as measured by BMI, waist and hip measurements than men who did not have prostate cancer diagnosis at follow-up. These men also had a higher uric acid level, and a higher fasting serum insulin level than men who did not have prostate cancer diagnosis at follow-up."

All of these accessory factors—blood pressure, BMI, waist and hip circumference, uric acid—are directly related to elevated insulin. Considering the prevalence of both prostate cancer and metabolic syndrome (high insulin), it's important for clinicians and the public alike to bear in mind the authors' conclusion:

"Our data support the hypothesis that a higher insulin level is a promoter of prostate cancer. Moreover, our data suggest that the insulin level could be used as a marker of the risk of developing prostate cancer. The present findings also seem to confirm that prostate cancer is a component of the metabolic syndrome. Finally, our data generate the hypothesis that the metabolic syndrome conceals early prostate cancer."