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A recent report published in the British Journal of Cancer demonstrates a link between the use of muscle-building supplements (such as creatine and androstenedione) and an increased risk of testicular cancer. This study is of particular importance because use of these supplements (which come in both pill and powder form) is growing more popular, especially among younger men.
Researchers at Yale University conducted a population-based case-control study that included 869 male residents of either Connecticut or Massachusetts who were between the ages of 18 and 55. Of these men, 356 had been diagnosed with testicular germ cell cancer (TGCC) between 2006 and 2010 while the other 513 had not.
Researchers discovered that nearly 20 percent of the participants with testicular cancer had used muscle building supplements (MBSs). According to the study’s conclusions, men who had taken MBSs had a significantly higher risk of developing TGCC than men who did not. In fact, MBS use could increase risk of TGCC by as much as 65 percent. The risks were even more apparent in those who had used these supplements prior to age 25 and those who had used two or more different types of supplements.
Tong Zhang Zheng, MB, ScD originally led the study. In an interview posted on Medscape, he revealed that, “No one knows at this stage what ingredients [in MBSs] might be responsible for the increase but we do know some of the ingredients in MBSs could cause testis damage.”
The study’s authors postulate that one reason for the increased risk may be that the natural components of these supplements may act as artificial hormones while another possibility is that some supplements may contain substances such as androgenic steroids that are not listed on the label.
More studies are needed to determine the cause of the increase in testicular cancer. Until then, men are advised to avoid using muscle building supplements. You can learn more about the study and its findings by reading the full Medscape article here.
