Is acne in adolescence associated with prostate cancer risk? Evidence from a meta-analysis

Previous studies regarding the relationship between acne and prostate cancer risk have reported inconsistent results. We performed the present meta-analysis of observational studies to summarize the evidence on this association.

A comprehensive literature search up to March 2018 was performed in PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science, and Chinese National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI) databases. Summary odds ratios (ORs) with 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were estimated with a random effects model. The Q statistic and the I2 index were used to evaluate the heterogeneity across the studies.

Eight studies were ultimately included in this meta-analysis. In the overall analysis, no significant association was found between acne and prostate cancer risk (OR = 1.08, 95% CI 0.93-1.25). A significant heterogeneity was observed across studies (P = 0.006, I2 = 64.5%). In the subgroup analysis by study design, a significant association was observed in the cohort studies (OR = 1.51, 95% CI 1.19-1.93) but not in the case-control studies (OR = 0.98, 95% CI 0.86-1.12).

In summary, this meta-analysis did not find an association between acne in adolescence and prostate cancer risk. However, because there was some heterogeneity in the overall analysis and a significant association was observed in the meta-analysis of the cohort studies, further well-designed large prospective studies are warranted to confirm our results.

PloS one. 2018 Nov 07*** epublish ***

Xian Zhang, Yi Lin, Xiaoning Xie, Meiya Shen, Guoping Huang, Yunmei Yang

Department of Geriatrics, First Affiliated Hospital, School of Medicine, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, China., Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, First Affiliated Hospital, School of Medicine, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, China.