Association between prostate size and the incidence of prostate cancer: a meta-analysis and review for urologists and clinicians

Abstract

Purpose: To review the literature regarding any clinically significant association between prostate size and the incidence of prostate cancer (PCa). No previous review or meta-analysis has reported this clinical question.

Methods: A thorough literature review was performed using PubMed and applying the 'PRISMA' guidelines. Inclusion and exclusion criteria were defined.

Results: A total of 30 articles met the search criteria. Of these 30 articles, 27 reported an inverse correlation between prostate volume (PV) and incidence of biopsy-proven PCa. The remaining three articles provided no clear statistically significant results, and there was no study showing a direct or positive correlation between PV and the incidence of PCa.

Conclusion: This review and meta-analysis is the first report summarizing the literature on the clinical question of whether prostate size affects the incidence of PCa. Ninety percent of studies (27/30) show significant evidence supporting the hypothesis that prostate size may be protective of PCa. This review and the outlined discussion should encourage other clinical investigators to explore the relationship between PV and the incidence and aggressiveness of PCa. If future studies should confirm the hypothesis of the dynamic interactions between the different prostatic zones in a growing prostate, it will have relevant clinical implications on the management of BPH and PCa.

Keywords: BPH; Cancer; Incidence; Prostate; Size; Volume.