Risk factors are anything that affects the chance of getting a disease or developing an unwanted health hazard, but you may have a disease without having any known risk factors. There are various cases of people having lung cancer without ever smoking or undergo liver failure without realising it. In case of prostate cancer, there are many conditions that can define the risk factors associated with it. Some of them are:

• Age is the strongest risk factor in prostate cancer. In fact there are countries, which refer to this disease as a disease for the old/elderly men. The chance of getting this disease increases after the age of 50. Almost 65% of all prostate cases are diagnosed in men after the age of 65 years.

• Prostate cancer seems to run in some family which makes it easier to understand that you can inherit the disease through genetic factor. The risk is much higher for men with several affected relatives particularly when they were diagnosed at a young age. Several inherited genes have been found to raise prostate cancer risks, but they account to smaller numbers. Some genes variations have been linked with prostate cancer risk. Some inherited genes risk more than one type of cancer through mutation. More genes increase mutational rate while other may predispose men into infection or viral infections thus increasing chances of getting prostate cancer.

• Diet is also accounted for in the risk factor list. Men who eat red meat or high fat dairy products appear to have a higher chance of getting this disease. Also those who do not eat fruits have a higher chance of getting the disease. Men who consume food containing high level of calcium in their diet (or supplement) may be at a higher risk. Eating food with no or low level of anti-oxidants (lycopene) may have been at higher risk of developing the disease. Men with alpha tocopherol deficiency have a higher chance of getting the disease. Low level of selenium has also been a risk factor.

• Alcoholism has also shown to be contributing factor for this disease.

• Obese men may have a chance of getting a low grade form of prostate disease, but higher chance of more aggressive prostate cancer.

• Sedentary lifestyle can increase the risk where as high level of physical activities particularly in elderly men above 55 years may lower the risk of advanced prostate cancer. Smoking has also shown some risk of getting prostate cancer.

• Inflammation of prostate gland may increase the risk of prostate cancer development.

• Infections such as sexually transmitted disease like Chlamydia, gonorrhea might increase the risk through inflammation of the prostate gland.

• Some men who have done vasectomy especially at the age of 35 have shown a higher chance of getting the disease after the age of 55 years.

• Lack of vegetables in the diet is also linked to a higher risk of aggressive prostate cancer.

• Other conditions that may be considered to be risk factors are tall height, lack of exercises and a sedentary lifestyle, black men have shown to have higher chance than other races of men. Presence of non cancerous condition of the prostate will increase risk of prostate cancer.

• High circulating level of sex hormones are associated with an increased risk of prostate cancer as most prostate cancer respond very well to androgen deprivation and castrated men do not develop prostate cancer.

• Men who expose themselves to high level of cadmium element in the welding area have higher risk of getting prostate cancer through interaction with zinc element in multiple metabolic pathways.

• Many studies have shown an increased risk of prostate cancer with an increase in vitamin A intake.

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