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Background The relationship between first-degree family history of female breast cancer and prostate cancer risk in the general population remains unclear. We performed a meta-analysis to determine the association between first-degree family history of female breast cancer and prostate cancer risk. Methods Databases, including MEDLINE, Embase, and Web of Science, were searched for all associated studies that evaluated associations between first-degree family history of female breast cancer and prostate cancer risk up to December 31, 2018. Information on study characteristics and outcomes were extracted based on the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Review and Meta-analysis (PRISMA) statement and Meta-analysis of Observational Studies in Epidemiology (MOOSE) guidelines. The quality of evidence was assessed using the GRADE approach. Results Eighteen studies involving 17,004,892 individuals were included in the meta-analysis. Compared with no family history of female breast cancer, history of female breast cancer in first-degree relatives was associated with an increased risk of prostate cancer [relative risk (RR) 1.18, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.12–1.25] with moderate-quality evidence. A history of breast cancer in mothers only (RR 1.19, 95% CI 1.10–1.28) and sisters only (RR 1.71, 95% CI 1.43–2.04) was associated with increased prostate cancer risk with moderate-quality evidence. However, a family history of breast cancer in daughters only was not associated with prostate cancer incidence (RR 1.74, 95% CI 0.74–4.12) with moderate-quality evidence. A family history of female breast cancer in first-degree relatives was associated with an 18% increased risk of lethal prostate cancer (95% CI 1.04–1.34) with low-quality evidence. Conclusions This review demonstrates that men with a family history of female breast cancer in first-degree relatives had an increased risk of prostate cancer, including risk of lethal prostate cancer. These findings may guide screening, earlier detection, and treatment of men with a family history of female breast cancer in first-degree relatives.

The aim of this study was to investigate the relationship between mean platelet volume (MPV), platelet distribution width (PDW), platelet count (PC) and erectile dysfunction (ED). We searched for observational studies from PubMed, EMBASE, Web of Science and CNKI up to 31 March 2016. Two reviewers independently selected the studies and extracted the data. MPV, PDW, and PC and mean differences in these platelet indices between healthy subjects and ED patients were explored using the Comprehensive Meta-Analysis software package. Seven studies including 795 patients and 524 healthy subjects met the inclusion criteria. The MPV was significantly larger in patients with ED than controls with the standardised mean difference of 0.596 fL (95% CI: 0.378, 0.815, p < 0.001). In ED patients, the pooled mean difference in MPV between vasculogenic ED patients and nonvasculogenic ED patients was 0.706 fL in case-control studies (95% CI: 0.410, 1.002, p < 0.001). There was no significant difference in PDW and PC between healthy subjects and ED patients. The available data suggest that larger MPV was associated with ED. Patients with vasculogenic ED tend to have higher MPV than nonvasculogenic ED patients. Further studies are needed to assess whether increased MPV in ED patients is associated with increased cardiovascular disease.

BackgroundThe inflammatory potential of diet has been shown to have an association with the risk of several cancer types, but the evidence is inconsistent regarding the related risk of urologic cancer (UC). Therefore, we conducted the present meta-analysis to investigate the association between the inflammatory potential of diet and UC.MethodsPubMed, Embase and Web of Science were searched up to July 31, 2018. Two reviewers independently selected the studies and extracted the data. The pooled risk ratio (RR) and its 95% confidence interval (CI) were calculated using the Stata12.0 software package.ResultsNine case-control studies and three cohort studies including 83,197 subjects met the inclusion criteria. The overall meta-analysis results showed that individuals with the highest category of DII (dietary inflammatory index) were associated with an increased risk of prostate cancer (RR = 1.62, 95% CI: 1.30–2.02); subgroup analysis showed consistent results. For kidney and bladder cancer, significant positive associations were found in individuals with the highest category of DII score; however, no significant association was found between DII and the risk of urothelial cell carcinoma (UCC).ConclusionAvailable data suggest that more pro-inflammatory diets are associated with an increased risk of prostate cancer, kidney cancer and bladder cancer. However, further well designed large-scaled cohort studies are warranted to provide more conclusive evidence.

BackgroundMethylenetetrahydrofolate reductase gene (MTHFR C677T and A1298C) and methionine synthase gene (MS A2756G) polymorphisms have shown an association with male infertility risk in several ethnic populations. Although several studies have evaluated these associations in Chinese populations, their small sample sizes and inconsistent outcomes have prevented strong conclusions. Therefore, the present meta-analysis was performed with published studies to evaluate the associations of the three single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) and male infertility in a Chinese population.MethodsWe conducted a search of PubMed, Embase, Web of Science, Chinese National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI), China biology medical literature (CBM), VIP, and Chinese literature (Wan Fang) databases up to May 31, 2016. Odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (95%CIs) were used to assess the strength of associations with a random-effect model or a fixed-effect model based on the heterogeneity analysis results. Sensitivity analysis was used to confirm the reliability and stability of the meta-analysis.ResultsA total of nine studies, including 1,713 cases and 1,104 controls, were included in the meta-analysis. The pooled results indicated that the MTHFR C667T polymorphism was significantly associated with increased risk of male infertility in the Chinese population in the allele model (T vs. C: OR = 1.47, 95%CI = 1.32–1.63), the dominant model (TT + CT vs. CC: OR = 1.51, 95%CI = 1.30–1.77), the additive model (TT vs. CC: OR = 2.08, 95%CI = 1.68–2.58) and the recessive model (TT vs. CT+CC: OR = 1.58, 95%CI = 1.31–1.90), whereas the MTHFR A1298C and MS A2756G polymorphisms were not risk factors. There was no significant heterogeneity in any genotype contrasts among the studies. The sensitivity analysis indicated that the results of this meta-analysis were relatively stable.ConclusionThis study suggests that the MTHFR C667T polymorphism may contribute to the genetic susceptibility to male infertility in the Chinese population, whereas MTHFR A1298C and MS A2756G polymorphisms may be unrelated to male infertility. Studies with larger sample sizes and representative population-based cases and well-matched controls are needed to validate our results.