A study from February 2016 by the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health found this fact: baldness and prostate cancer mortality related.
Other studies have linked prostate cancer and baldness. But this study is the first to notice that prostate cancer mortality and baldness are related. Prostate cancer mortality is a measure of how many people prostate cancer kills. In white men it was a 1.58-fold risk compared to those who were not balding. But previous studies in black men found a slightly higher risk of about a 2.5-fold risk to get prostate cancer.
Reasons why baldness and prostate cancer mortality related
Key to baldness and to the development of prostate cancer is the same androgen, dihydrotestosterone (DHT). This is a metabolite of testosterone. It stimulates the prostate to grow in size. It also encourages the transformation of normal prostate cells into prostate cancer cells. DHT also activates male pattern baldness in those men who have inherited the gene that triggers this condition. On the other hand many studies have shown that testosterone is NOT the culprit that many have thought it was in the past. To the contrary: a LACK of testosterone in aging men is what triggers prostate cancer development. Aging men should have their testosterone levels checked and testosterone replaced when those are found to be low. On the other hand a male with a history of baldness in the family and coming down himself with baldness has the option of using two medications that have been found to reduce prostate cancer. Proscar (finasteride) and Avodart (dutasteride) have both been shown to reduce the risk of prostate cancer and to reduce the prostate gland volume by 17% to 25% in a relatively short time.
Baldness And Prostate Cancer Mortality Related
Conclusion
Don’t panic, if you are balding and you hear: baldness and prostate cancer mortality related. But watch it, if you are bald and testosterone deficient at the same time. If you are bald and have testosterone deficiency, you would have now two risks. In this situation you are at a higher risk to get prostate cancer. You should see your physician and make sure your testosterone level is normal. If it is low, ask for testosterone treatment and measure your testosterone level again to make sure it has come up into the high normal range. Next consider Proscar or Avodart and discuss this with your healthcare provider. If you are put on Proscar or Avodart, your DHT level would normalize and your risk to develop prostate cancer would return to normal. I thought it was fitting to pick an image for this blog of the philanthropist, Mike Milken. He is bald and was diagnosed with prostate cancer in 1993.
More info about prostate cancer: https://nethealthbook.com/cancer-overview/prostate-cancer/staging-prostate-cancer/
