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Tall men are at greater risk of contracting aggressive prostate cancer, the findings of a large study suggest. A six foot tall man has a 21 per cent higher risk of high-grade prostate cancer than one who is five feet and eight inches. Middle-aged spread of around four inches around the waist can raise the risk by another 13 per cent, an Oxford University study has found. Tall men have higher levels of growth hormones which cause them to shoot upwards as children, but are linked to prostate cancer in adulthood. Men who are overweight, particularly those putting on weight around their middle, are thought to alter their testosterone levels, which may also lead to cancer. Both groups of larger men are also at increased risk of dying from prostate cancer. Lead author Dr Aurora Perez-Cornago said: 'The finding of high risk in taller men may provide insights into the mechanisms underlying prostate cancer development, for example related to early nutrition and growth.' Each year more than 46,000 men in the UK are diagnosed with prostate cancer and around 11,000 die from the disease. Prostate cancer tumours can be slow-growing 'pussycats’ or aggressive, fast-growing, quick to spread and potentially deadly 'tigers’. |