Microplastics May Be Messing With Your Prostate, Too

MICROPLASTICS ARE EVERYWHERE. These little pieces of plastic—measuring 5 millimeters or less—are in the food we eat to the air we breathe to many parts of our bodies. Though the amount varies, scientists have previously detected microplastics in the blood, brain, heart, and penis.

Now, researchers have found microplastics in a brand new place: lodged in prostate cancer tumors. It once again raises the question of what the relationship might be between these ubiquitous bits of plastic and cancer. A recent, small study presented at the American Society of Clinical Oncology’s Genitourinary Cancers Symposium found microplastics in 90 percent of the tissue samples researchers collected from people with prostate cancer.

The study might raise some concerns, as microplastics have been previously linked to other cancers. So MH reached out to a few doctors to get their takes on the findings. Short answer: it’s complicated, but don’t jump to conclusions yet.

Probing the Connection Between Prostate Cancer and Microplastics

NYU researchers collected tissue from 10 people with prostate cancer who were undergoing a surgery to remove the entire prostate. “There are still very few studies on health impacts of microplastics,” says Stacy Loeb, MD, lead study author and a professor in the NYU Grossman School of Medicine’s Departments of Urology and Population Health. “I wanted to study whether microplastics are associated with cancer.”

They aimed to detect microplastics in two ways. With one method that detected larger microplastics, they found them in 60 percent of tissue samples in people with cancer. Microplastics ranged in size between 2 µm to 40.3 µm. For context, that’s about the size of a single dust particle to a width of human hair.

When they used a different method to find even smaller molecules, they detected microplastics in the tissue samples of 90 percent of people with prostate cancer. They found microplastics in only 70 percent of prostate tissue samples that didn’t have cancer. Crunching the numbers, cancerous tissues had 2.5 times the concentration of plastic than healthy prostate tissue.

Scientists also detected high levels of plastics that do not break down in the environment. These include nylon-6, commonly found in clothing and food packaging, and polystyrene. Polystyrene is a versatile plastic found in food packaging, toys, and electronics.

Do Microplastics Cause Prostate Cancer?

The study made some interesting observations, but it’s too soon to tell if microplastics were the cause of prostate cancer. Vice versa, there’s no way to tell if there’s anything about the cancerous tumors themselves that attract microplastics.

“This indicates a relationship between environmental factors and prostate carcinogenesis, though the data do not allow us to conclude that prostate cancer is caused by microplastics,” says Samir Taneja, MD, MD, study co-author and chair of urology at Northwell Health. (The researchers are continuing to study this link.)

Another issue with drawing definitive conclusions from this study: 10 participants in the study is a low sample size, points out Ramkishen Narayanan, MD, urologic oncologist and director of the Center for Urologic Health at The Roy and Patricia Disney Family Cancer Center at Providence Saint Joseph Medical Center. The observations may be unique to this specific cohort of people and may not accurately represent a broader population.

Also sounding a note of caution, Jeffrey J. Tosoian, MD, MPH, director of Translational Cancer Research at Vanderbilt-Ingram Cancer Center who was also not involved in the study, says it’s still very premature to say that microplastics cause prostate cancer. Still, he notes it is not ruled out as a potential contributing factor.

Microplastics have previously been found to damage DNA, cause inflammation, and injure the lining of organs. Additionally, microplastics can increase the opportunity for chemicals and other carcinogenic toxins to hitch a ride inside your body.

How to Reduce Your Risk of Prostate Cancer

One in 8 men will get a prostate cancer diagnosis. Still, there are ways to reduce your chances of developing it later in life.

Tosoian recommends avoiding smoking, getting regular vigorous physical activity, maintaining a healthy weight, and following a plant-heavy diet—the same recommendations for preventing a host of serious illnesses.

“When patients ask what steps they can take to reduce their risk of prostate cancer, I tell them they are the exact same steps we take to improve our overall health,” he says. “While the steps are not surprising, we now have good evidence that taking these measures does have a positive impact.”

Narayanan also stresses the importance of getting regularly screened for prostate cancer. “Check your prostate-specific antigen, get screened, and establish early access to a urologist.”

If you want to be extra cautious about your health, doctors say it’s always a good idea to reduce your exposure to plastics wherever you can. Taneja recommends lowering the amount of plastic used in food preparation and storage. Also, try to avoid overheating of non-stick cooking surfaces. “It seems reasonable to modify behaviors as much as possible to avoid sources of plastic in the diet and environment as much as possible,” he says.

Korin Miller is a freelance writer specializing in general wellness, sexual health and relationships, and lifestyle trends, with work appearing in Men’s Health, Women’s Health, Self, Glamour, and more. She has a master’s degree from American University, lives by the beach, and hopes to own a teacup pig and taco truck one day.

Jocelyn Solis-Moreira, MS is the associate health & fitness for Men’s Health and has previously written for CNN, Scientific American, Popular Science, and National Geographic before joining the brand. When she’s not working, she’s doing circus arts or working towards the perfect pull-up.