Can your blood type determine your cancer risk? The surprising answer may be yes, according to new research showing prostate cancer patients with blood type O have a significantly lower chance of the cancer recurring.
The findings, by Tokyo Medical University, are based on a study involving 555 cancer patients that found men with blood type O were 35 percent less likely to experience prostate cancer recurrence than men with blood type A.
"This is the first time anyone has shown that prostate cancer recurrence can vary with blood group," said lead researcher Yoshio Ohno, M.D.
He added that more studies are needed to determine what treatment applications they might have.
"For example, we know that there are wide racial and geographical variations in the distribution of the ABO blood groups, and we need to be sure that this effect is significant in other groups," he says.
The researchers noted that past research has linked variations in blood type to different risks for developing cancers such as gastric and pancreatic cancer.
Prostate cancer is the most common cancer in men, causing more than 28,000 deaths in the U.S. The Tokyo Medical University findings were presented at a meeting of the European Association of Urology in Sweden.
"We need to consider what these results mean in practical, clinical terms," Dr. Ohno said. "For example, should we be counseling people with certain blood groups that they have a greater or lesser chance of recurrence, and should these risk factors be built into decisions on treatment?"
Editor's Note::
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