Testosterone therapy is not linked with an increased risk of high-grade prostate cancer, according to a population-based study involving more than 52,000 men diagnosed with prostate cancer.

Investigators selected participants using SEER-Medicare linked data. They excluded patients enrolled in an HMO in the 60 months before diagnosis, as well as those with unknown tumor grade or stage. The cohort include 574 men who had a history of testosterone use and 51,945 who did not.

Exposure to testosterone therapy was not associated with an increased risk of high-grade prostate cancer or receiving primary androgen deprivation therapy. Additionally, the risk of high-grade disease did not increase with the total number of testosterone injections.

Citation: Baillargeon J, Kuo Y, Fang X, Shahinian V. Long-term exposure to testosterone therapy and the risk of high grade prostate cancer. J Urol. 2015;194(6):1612-1616.