According to researchers at Yale University, an increased consumption of muscle-building supplements could explain the rising rate of testicular cancer in young men over the last three decades.
The U.S. based Surveillance Epidemiology and End Restuls program shows that cases of testicular cancer per 100,000 men aged between 15 and 39 increased from 3.7 in 1975 to 5.9 in 2011.
According to the National Health Service, testicular cancer is the most common form of the disease to affect men between the ages of 19 and 49. However, it account for only 1% of cancers in men overall.
Researchers found that men who had taken supplements with the ingredients creatine or androstenedione were more likely to have developed testicular cancer than those that did not.
The first study researchers used a sample of 356 men with cases of testicular cancer and 51 without as a control group. The subjects were also a wide variety of questions about potential risk factors for testicular cancer in addition to whether they took supplements. The use of supplements was defined as using them at least once a week for at least four weeks.
Almost 20% of those with cases of testicular cancer had used supplements.
Researchers also found that those who sued an earlier age had a higher risk, those use for a longer period of time had a higher risk, and those who used multiple types had a higher risk.
Researchers believe that the study shows a strong relationship between the risk of cancer and he use of muscle building supplements use.
The magnitude of the association and the observed dose-response trends demonstrate that muscle building supplements use may be an important and modifiable exposure that could have important scientific and clinical importance for preventing testicular germ cell cancer development if this association is confirmed by future studies.
