Cancer of the Prostate: Incidence in the USA

Prostate cancer is the second most common malignancy affecting men and the second leading cancer killer of men in the United States. One out of every seven men in the United States will be diagnosed with prostate cancer in their lifetime. Prostate cancer incidence in the United States increased dramatically with the adoption of prostate-specific antigen test in the late 1980s, for the early detection of prostate cancer and has decreased steadily since. Early screening efforts have led to a stage migration. In the mid-1980s less than one-third of men were detected with organ-confined disease. Today, more than two-thirds of men have organ-confined disease at diagnosis. Socioeconomic status and access to healthcare services, in a major way, drives prostate cancer incidence and survival, with patients in higher-SES classes experiencing higher incidence and lower cancer-specific mortality. Several factors have been touted to increase the risk for prostate cancer, including pharmaceuticals, environmental factors, dietary patterns, and nutritional supplements; however, age, family history, race/ethnicity, BRCA1/2 mutations, and Lynch syndrome are the only well-established risk factors for prostate cancer.