Bicycling Does Not Cause Prostate Cancer
Extensive data show that exercise, including cycling, is associated with reduced risk for prostate cancer (1,2,3,4). No data exists today to associate any exercise with increased cancer risk. Doctors screen for prostate cancer with a blood test called PSA. Some studies show that bicycle riding is associated with temporary (up to 2 days) elevated PSA levels, while others show that it has no association whatever (5, 6). No studies show that bicycle riding is associated with continued PSA elevation (7).
Effects of cycling on the prostate: A Medline search of the literature on bicycling and genitourinary disorders yielded 62 articles. They found increased risk for genitalia numbness (50–91 percent), impotence (13–24 percent), and extraordinarily rare cases of sustained erections, penile clots, infertility, blood in urine, twisting of the spermatic cord, prostatitis, and sustained elevated serum PSA (8).
Factors associated with increased risk for prostate cancer:
Nobody knows what causes prostate cancer. The following are associated with increased risk:
• exposure to automobile exhaust fumes or particular air pollution (Blaire &
Fraumeni, 1978; Kippling & Waterhouse, 1967; Winkelstein &
Kantor, 1969; Winkelstein, 1982)
• high fat diet and too much vitamin C (Blair & Fraumeni, 1978; Graham et al., 1983; Reddy
et al., 1980)
• An increased number of sexual partners (Schuman et al., 1977; Steele et al., 1971)
• frequency of sexual intercourse (Steele et al, 1971)
• use of prostitutes (Schuman et al., 1977)
• extramarital sexual relationships (Steele et al., 1971)
• an early age at onset of sexual activity (Schuman et al, 1977)
• older age
• a family history of prostate cancer
• being African-American
• sedentary lifestyle
• smoking
• workplace exposure to heavy metals such as cadmium
1. British journal of cancer. 2009;101(11):1932-1938.
2. Br J Cancer. 2001 November; 85(9): 1311–1316.
3. European Journal of Epidemiology, 2005; 20(2):0393-2990).
4. Cancer Causes and Control. 1994;5(6):549-566).
5. Archives of Family Medicine; Vol. 6; Sept/Oct 1997; 500-502.
6. Journal of Urology; 1994;151;423-425.
7. J Urology. 1996;56(1):103-105.
8. European Urology, 2005;47(3):277-287.