A man’s immune system can prevent the development of prostate cancer, according to a study from the University of Oxford.
Data shows that men with higher levels of certain proteins in their blood have a reduced risk of developing the disease.
Interleukin-15 (IL-15) – a protein that stimulates and maintains cancer-fighting T cells and natural killer cells – was associated with a 14 to 15 percent reduced risk of developing prostate cancer.
For the study, researchers from Oxford Population Health analyzed 368 proteins involved in coordination and activation of the immune system from the European Prospective Survey on Cancer and Nutrition (Epic).
This included 1,434 men who developed prostate cancer more than a decade later on average and a similar number who did not.
The experts also looked at data from 21,481 men taking part in the UK Biobank study, including 1,147 with prostate cancer.
Dr Mahboubeh Parsaeian, senior medical statistician at Oxford Population Health, said: “Our findings suggest that the immune system actually plays a role in the early development or suppression of prostate cancer. »
It was previously thought that the immune system had little impact on prostate cancer, but the new findings challenge this idea.
Gn Health
