Associations Between Long-Term Exposure to Air Pollutants and Prostate Cancer in a Large Taiwanese Population

Air pollution is associated with various illnesses including cancers, of which prostate cancer is one of the most prevalent malignancies in men. Emerging evidence has suggested that air pollution is a potential risk factor for prostate cancer. This study aimed to explore the relationship between air pollution and prostate cancer in a Taiwanese population. Using data from the Kaohsiung Medical University Hospital Database, we conducted a case-control study to identify patients with prostate cancer, and matched them by age with individuals without prostate cancer. Environmental pollution indices including particulate matter (PM), nitrogen oxides (NOx), sulfur dioxide (SO2), ozone (O3) and carbon monoxide (CO) were correlated with the patients' addresses using data from the Taiwan Central Air Quality Monitoring Network. The analysis included 3541 prostate cancer patients and 7082 age-matched controls. After adjusting for confounders, conditional logistic regression analysis demonstrated significant associations of prostate cancer with PM2.5 (odds ratio [95% confidence interval]: 1.240 [1.134-1.356]) and CO (odds ratio [95% confidence interval]: 1.105 [1.025-1.192]) at the index date, with similar associations observed for average exposure levels over 1, 2, 3, and 5 years prior to the index date. Furthermore, sensitivity analyses revealed that the odds ratios for combined-risk Z-score exposure at the index date and over these same time periods were 1.029, 1.033, 1.034, 1.034, and 1.033, respectively. These findings suggest that prolonged exposure to multiple air pollutants collectively contributes to prostate cancer risk. Further investigations are needed to validate these findings and explore potential underlying mechanisms.