TEEN BOOZING INCREASES PROSTATE CANCER RISK Study reveals disease link in later years

BOYS boozing from an early age treble their chance of developing prostate cancer later in life.

Bingeing on seven or more drinks increases the risk of a “high-grade” form of the disease.

Ditching alcohol between the ages of 15 and 19 could save your life, according to a report backed by the Irish Cancer Society. Dublin doctor Emma Allott carried out the research at the University of Carolina. She said: “The prostate is an organ that grows rapidly during puberty, so it’s potentially more susceptible to carcinogenic exposure during the adolescent years.”

The expert –who is now a lecturer in the Centre for Cancer Research and Cell Biology at Queen’s University Belfast – analysed the biopsy results for 650 men who had no prior history of prostate cancer.

They were also quizzed about the amount of alcohol drank weekly during each decade of their lives.

While current booze consumption won’t immediately increase the risk of the disease, Dr Allott added: “It’s possible the effect of alcohol comes from a lifetime intake, or from intake earlier in life rather than alcohol patterns around the time of diagnosis of prostate cancer.”

However, it was difficult to determine how smoking interfered with results because most of those who admitted to heavy drinking tended to smoke as well.

How many men were analysed in study by Dublin doctor