Obesity was linked with an increased risk for prostate cancer among African-American men, according to researchers from the University of Washington Schools of Public Health and Nursing and the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center.

[Photo: Dr. Wendy Barrington]

The study, published in JAMA Oncology, found that African-American men overall had a 58 percent increased risk for prostate cancer compared with non-Hispanic White men. Their risk quadrupled as their body-mass index increased. African-American men have the highest rates of prostate cancer of any racial or ethnic group in the United States.

The study was based on data from nearly 3,400 African-American men and more than 22,600 non-Hispanic White men who took part in the Selenium and Vitamin E Cancer Prevention Trial from 2001 to 2011. Over a median follow-up of 5.6 years, 1,723 men developed prostate cancer.

“The study reinforces the importance of obesity prevention and treatment among African-American men, for whom the health benefits may be comparatively large,” the researchers wrote.

Researchers from the School of Public Health included first author Dr. Wendy Barrington, adjunct assistant professor of epidemiology; senior author Dr. Alan Kristal, professor of epidemiology; Dr. Ruth Etzioni, affiliate professor of biostatistics and health services; and Dr. Marian Neuhouser, affiliate professor of epidemiology.

Study link: http://oncology.jamanetwork.com/article.aspx?articleid=2250348