Prostate Cancer Risk Reduced by Physical Activity Even Among Men With Prolonged Sitting Time: A Study From Vietnam

Abstract

Increasing prostate cancer incidence in the Asia-Pacific region may be related to a more sedentary lifestyle resulted from economic growth and rapid urbanization. The present case-control study of 640 men aged 64 to 75 years was conducted in Vietnam between 2013 and 2015 to ascertain the relationship between physical activity and prostate cancer risk, accounting for the duration of sitting time. Reduced prostate cancer risks were found for men engaging in medium (15.8-47.3 metabolic equivalent task [MET]-h/week) and high (>47.3 MET-h/week) physical activity levels, with the adjusted odds ratios being 0.52 (95% confidence interval = 0.35-0.77) and 0.27 (95% confidence interval = 0.14-0.49), respectively. This association was independent of sitting time. Analyses of joint association of physical activity and sitting time also found a reduction in the cancer risk for higher energy expenditure levels. Similar results were evident for both low-medium and high grade tumors. The findings are important for developing health strategies to prevent prostate cancer in Asian countries.