Possible association between androgenic alopecia and risk of prostate cancer and testicular germ cell tumor: a systematic review and meta-analysis

• Published in: BMC cancer Vol. 18; no. 1; pp. 279 - 11
• Main Authors: Liang, Weijun, Song, Liuying, Peng, Zheng, Zou, Yan, Dai, Shengming
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: London BioMed Central 12.03.2018; BioMed Central Ltd; BMC
• Subjects: Alopecia; Alopecia - complications; Alopecia - mortality; Alopecia - pathology; Analysis; Androgenic alopecia; Association; Biomedical and Life Sciences; Biomedicine; Cancer Research; Care and treatment; Epidemiology; Health Promotion and Disease Prevention; Humans; Male; Medicine/Public Health; Meta-analysis; Mortality; Neoplasms, Germ Cell and Embryonal - complications; Neoplasms, Germ Cell and Embryonal - mortality; Neoplasms, Germ Cell and Embryonal - pathology; Oncology; prevention and public health; Proportional Hazards Models; Prostate - pathology; Prostate cancer; Prostatic Neoplasms - complications; Prostatic Neoplasms - mortality; Prostatic Neoplasms - pathology; Research Article; Risk; Risk Assessment; Risk Factors; Surgical Oncology; Testicular germ cell tumor; Testicular Neoplasms - complications; Testicular Neoplasms - mortality; Testicular Neoplasms - pathology; Risk; Androgenic alopecia; Association; Testicular germ cell tumor; Prostate cancer; Meta-analysis
• ISSN: 1471-2407; 1471-2407
• DOI: 10.1186/s12885-018-4194-z

Background A number of studies have investigated the association between androgenic alopecia (AGA) and cancer risk, but they have yielded inconsistent results. Therefore, this study was conducted to explore this controversial subject. Methods A literature database search was performed according to predefined criteria. An odds ratio (OR) or a hazard ratio (HR) with 95% confidence intervals (CIs) was retained to evaluate the relationship between the incidence of cancer or cancer-specific mortality and categories of AGA. Then a pooled OR or HR was derived. Results The pooled results showed that no specific degree of baldness had an influence on the incidence of cancer or cancer-specific mortality. However, AGA, especially frontal baldness, with the incidence of testicular germ cell tumor (TGCT) (OR = 0.69; 95% CI = 0.58–0.83). A significant increase of risk was observed in relation to high grade prostate cancer (PC) (OR = 1.42; 95% CI 1.02–1.99) and vertex with/without frontal baldness was associated with PC risk. Conclusions The study results supported the hypothesis that AGA is negatively associated with TGCT risk and suggested an overlapping pathophysiological mechanism between them, while the viewpoint that AGA can be used as a phenotypic marker for PC risk was poorly supported.