Prostate cancer may be sexually transmitted

Prostate cancer can be a sexually transmitted disease, due to a common but often "quietly" form of infection while couples do "it".

According to the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences magazine, researchers from the University of California (USA) conducted a test of prostate cells of people in the laboratory. They found that a type of sexually transmitted infection called whooping tail (trichomoniasis) facilitates cancer development.

Trichomoniasis is believed to attack around 275 million people around the world and is a sexually transmitted form, not the most common virus that causes it today. Usually, people with trichomoniasis do not have symptoms and do not know they are sick.

Men infected with trichomoniasis may experience itching or irritation inside the penis, burning after urination or ejaculation or "little boy" abnormal white discharge. Meanwhile, infected women may have itching or pain in the genitalia, uncomfortable when urinating or bad air smells fishy.

The latest study is not the first to show a link between trichomoniasis and prostate cancer. A 2009 study found that one in four men with prostate cancer had symptoms of trichomoniasis and these men were more likely to develop advanced tumors.

The new study shows how sexually transmitted infections can make men more susceptible to prostate cancer, although it is not possible to provide evidence of that connection. Professor Patricia Johnson and colleagues from the University of California discovered that the parasite that causes trichomoniasis - the flagellum Trichomonas vaginalis - produces a protein that causes inflammation as well as enhances the growth and invasion of the cells. cell prostate cancer.

Experts say more research is needed to clarify the finding, especially because we still don't know the causes of prostate cancer. Although many types of cancers are caused by infections, the Cancer Research UK says it is too early to include prostate cancer on this list.