Prostate cancer characteristics in fathers and risk of early onset high-risk prostate cancer in sons

Sep 23, 2026

Uploaded by dhado

A family history of prostate cancer in first-degree relatives is a known risk factor, but links between fathers’ prostate cancer characteristics and the risk of early onset high-risk disease in sons are not well established. The study identified sons in Prostate Cancer data Base Sweden whose fathers were diagnosed in 1998–2005 and compared observed diagnoses with expected numbers in the Swedish population using standardized incidence ratios. Results indicate elevated risks based on paternal age at diagnosis and Gleason score.

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CategoryHealthcare

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DOI: 10.1002/ijc.70133 RES EARCH A RTICLE Ca ncer Epidemiology Prostate cancer characteristics in fathers and risk of early onset high-risk prostate cancer in sons E Lin 1 | Hans Garmo 1 | Kerri Beckmann 2 | Ola Bratt 3,4 | Olof Akre 5,6 | Pär Stattin 1 | Rolf Gedeborg 1 1Department of Surgical Sciences, Uppsala University, Uppsala, Sweden 2Cancer Epidemiology and Population Health Research Group, Allied Health and Human Performance, University of South Australia, Adelaide, Australia 3Department of Urology, Institute of Clinical Sciences, Sahlgrenska Academy, University of Gothenburg, Gothenburg, Sweden 4Department of Urology, Sahlgrenska University Hospital, Gothenburg, Sweden 5Department of Molecular Medicine and Surgery, Karolinska Institute, Stockholm, Sweden 6Department of Pelvic Cancer, Karolinska University Hospital, Stockholm, Sweden Correspondence Rolf Gedeborg, Department of Surgical Sciences, Uppsala University, SE-751 85 Uppsala, Sweden. Email: [rolf.gedeborg@uu.se](rolf.gedeborg@uu.se) Funding information Region Uppsala; Uppsala Universitet; Vetenskapsrådet, Grant/Award Number: 2022-00544; Cancerfonden, Grant/Award Number: 19 00 30 Abstract A family history of prostate cancer in first-degree relatives is an established risk factor for prostate cancer, but the specific associations between prostate cancer characteristics in fathers and the risk of high-risk prostate cancer in their sons remain unclear. We identified men in Prostate Cancer data Base Sweden whose fathers had been diagnosed with prostate cancer in 1998–2005 . We compared the observed number of prostate cancer diagnoses in these men with the expected number in the Swedish male population, estimating standardized incidence ratios (SIR) . The median age of the 25,287 included sons of men with prostate cancer was 52 years (interquartile range 47–57 years) at end of follow-up. Their overall risk of a prostate cancer diagnosis was higher if the father had been diagnosed at less than 65 years old (SIR, 4.3, 95% confidence interval [CI], 3.8–5.0), compared with having a father diagnosed when 70 years old or older (SIR, 2 .3; 95% CI 1 .9–2.8) . Sons of fathers diagnosed at less than 65 had a higher risk of Gleason score ≥8 cancers (SIR, 2 .3; 95% CI 1 .1–4. 1) than sons of fathers diagnosed at 70 years old or older (SIR, 1 .2; 95% CI 0 .4–2. 6) . Having a father with a Gleason ≥8 cancer was associated with an increased risk for a Gleason ≥8 cancer (SIR, 2 . 6; 95% CI 1 .1–5. 1) . These population-based results suggest that the father's prostate cancer characteristics should be considered when counseling men on prostate-specific antigen testing and diagnostic strategies. Abbreviations: CI, confidence interval; NCCS, National Comprehensive Cancer Network; NPCR, National Prostate Cancer Register; PCBase, Prostate Cancer dataBase Sweden; PSA, prostatespecific antigen; SIR, standardized incidence ratio. Rolf Gedeborg is also employed by the Medical Products Agency (MPA) in Sweden. The MPA is a Swedish Government Agency. The views expressed in this article may not represent the views of the MPA. This is an open access article under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial License, which permits use, distribution and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited and is not used for commercial purposes. © 2025 The Author(s) . International Journal of Cancer published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of UICC. KEYWOR DS cancer characteristics, cohort study, family history, mortality, prostate cancer What's New? A family history of prostate cancer is an established prostate cancer risk factor. However, the specific associations between prostate cancer characteristics in fathers and the risk of highgrade prostate cancer in their sons remain unclear. In this large population-based cohort study, having a father diagnosed with prostate cancer before 65 years of age and/or with

FAQs

What was the study aiming to determine?

To estimate the strength of associations between fathers’ prostate cancer characteristics and the risk of early onset high-risk prostate cancer in their sons.

How did the researchers assess risk in the sons?

They identified sons whose fathers were diagnosed in 1998–2005, then compared observed prostate cancer diagnoses with expected diagnoses in the Swedish male population using standardized incidence ratios (SIR).

Which paternal characteristics were linked to higher risk in sons?

Sons had higher overall risk when their father was diagnosed before age 65, and sons also showed increased risk of Gleason score ≥8 cancers for fathers diagnosed before 65. A father with Gleason score ≥8 was also associated with increased risk of Gleason ≥8 in sons.

Sep 23, 2026

Uploaded by dhado