Body mass index and penile cancer incidence: results from a Norwegian cohort study of 829,081 men
File(s)
Published version
Author(s)
Type
Journal Article
Abstract
Background
A few previous studies have suggested a possible association between adiposity and increased risk of penile cancer, however, the evidence is to date limited for this rare cancer. We investigated the association between body mass index (BMI) and penile cancer risk in a large Norwegian cohort.
Methods
The analyses included 829,081 men aged 16–75 years at baseline in 1963–1975. Multivariable Cox regression analyses were used to estimate hazard ratios (HRs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) for the associations between BMI and penile cancer incidence.
Results
A total of 725 incident penile cancer cases occurred during 25.6 million person-years of follow-up. Compared to men with BMI 18.5-<25, the HRs (95% CIs) of those with a BMI of 15-<18.5, 25-<30, and ≥ 30 were 0.45 (0.15–1.41), 1.14 (0.97–1.33) and 1.63 (1.20–2.22), respectively, and the HR was 1.26 (1.12–1.42) per 5 kg/m2 increase in BMI. When the obese category was further subdivided in grade 1 (BMI 30-<35) and grade 2 obesity (≥ 35), the respective HRs were 1.52 (1.10–2.10) and 3.28 (1.46–7.35, ptrend<0.001). The positive association persisted in sensitivity analyses excluding the first 5 years of follow-up. The association between BMI in early adulthood and penile cancer risk was less precise (1.23, 0.91–1.65 per 5 kg/m2, n = 143 cases) and for BMI and early-onset penile cancer was null (1.03, 0.51–2.06 per 5 kg/m2, n = 27 cases).
Conclusion
High BMI is associated with increased risk of penile cancer. Further studies are needed to investigate the potential underlying mechanisms.
A few previous studies have suggested a possible association between adiposity and increased risk of penile cancer, however, the evidence is to date limited for this rare cancer. We investigated the association between body mass index (BMI) and penile cancer risk in a large Norwegian cohort.
Methods
The analyses included 829,081 men aged 16–75 years at baseline in 1963–1975. Multivariable Cox regression analyses were used to estimate hazard ratios (HRs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) for the associations between BMI and penile cancer incidence.
Results
A total of 725 incident penile cancer cases occurred during 25.6 million person-years of follow-up. Compared to men with BMI 18.5-<25, the HRs (95% CIs) of those with a BMI of 15-<18.5, 25-<30, and ≥ 30 were 0.45 (0.15–1.41), 1.14 (0.97–1.33) and 1.63 (1.20–2.22), respectively, and the HR was 1.26 (1.12–1.42) per 5 kg/m2 increase in BMI. When the obese category was further subdivided in grade 1 (BMI 30-<35) and grade 2 obesity (≥ 35), the respective HRs were 1.52 (1.10–2.10) and 3.28 (1.46–7.35, ptrend<0.001). The positive association persisted in sensitivity analyses excluding the first 5 years of follow-up. The association between BMI in early adulthood and penile cancer risk was less precise (1.23, 0.91–1.65 per 5 kg/m2, n = 143 cases) and for BMI and early-onset penile cancer was null (1.03, 0.51–2.06 per 5 kg/m2, n = 27 cases).
Conclusion
High BMI is associated with increased risk of penile cancer. Further studies are needed to investigate the potential underlying mechanisms.
Date Issued
2024-11-27
Date Acceptance
2024-10-25
Citation
BMC Urology, 2024, 24
ISSN
1471-2490
Publisher
BMC
Journal / Book Title
BMC Urology
Volume
24
Copyright Statement
© The Author(s) 2024. Open Access This article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License, which permits use,
sharing, adaptation, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, as long as you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and
the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons licence, and indicate if changes were made. The images or other third party material in this
article are included in the article’s Creative Commons licence, unless indicated otherwise in a credit line to the material. If material is not included
in the article’s Creative Commons licence and your intended use is not permitted by statutory regulation or exceeds the permitted use, you will
need to obtain permission directly from the copyright holder. To view a copy of this licence, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/.
sharing, adaptation, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, as long as you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and
the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons licence, and indicate if changes were made. The images or other third party material in this
article are included in the article’s Creative Commons licence, unless indicated otherwise in a credit line to the material. If material is not included
in the article’s Creative Commons licence and your intended use is not permitted by statutory regulation or exceeds the permitted use, you will
need to obtain permission directly from the copyright holder. To view a copy of this licence, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/.
License URL
Identifier
https://bmcurol.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12894-024-01636-z
Publication Status
Published
Article Number
260
Date Publish Online
2024-11-27