Early estrogen exposure leads to later prostate cancer risk

Prostate Cancer :: Early estrogen exposure leads to later prostate cancer risk

A new study has shown that exposure to low doses of environmental estrogens during development of the prostate gland in the male fetus may result in a predisposition to prostate cancer later in life.

The study, done in an animal model, also demonstrates how the predisposition may arise, and a way to identify those at risk.

Man-made compounds that can mimic the hormone action of estrogens (xenoestrogens) are widespread in the environment. One of these agents is bisphenol A (BPA), used in the manufacture of plastics and epoxy resins.

In this study, a research team led by Dr. Gail Prins of the University of Illinois at Chicago and Dr. Shuk-Mei Ho of the University of Cincinnati exposed rats to low doses of estradiol, a natural estrogen, or to BPA during the developmental period corresponding to the second and third trimester of human pregnancy. They found that this early exposure predisposed male rats to precancerous lesions of the prostate in old age.

"Most remarkably, early BPA exposure sensitized the prostate to precancerous lesions brought on by exposure of the adult animal to elevated estradiol," said Prins, professor of urology at UIC and senior author of the study. "This is highly relevant to people, because relative estradiol levels increase in aging men as a result of their increased body fat and declining testosterone levels."

The researchers conclude that exposure to environmental estrogens, such as BPA, or natural estrogens affect the pattern of gene expression in the prostate during development, and in so doing promote prostate disease with aging.