Previous studies have reported that adult height is positively associated w
ith the risk of prostate cancer. The authors carried out a population-based
case-control study involving 317 prostate cancer cases and 480 controls to
further investigate the possibility that height is more strongly associate
d with advanced, compared with localized forms of this disease. Since the i
nherited endocrine factors, which in part determine height attained during
the growing years, may influence the risk of familial prostate cancer later
in life, the relationship with height was also investigated for familial v
ersus sporadic prostate cancers. Adult height was not related to the risk o
f localized prostate cancer, but there was a moderate positive association
between increasing height and the risk of advanced cancer (relative risk (R
R) = 1.62; 95% confidence interval (CI) 0.97-2.73, upper versus lowest quar
tile, P-trend = 0.07). Height was more strongly associated with the risk of
prostate cancer in men with a positive family history compared with those
reporting a negative family history. The RR of advanced prostate cancer for
men in the upper height quartile with a positive family history was 7.41 (
95% CI 1.68-32.67, P-trend = 0.02) compared with a reference group comprise
d of men in the shortest height quartile with a negative family history. Se
rum insulin-like growth factor-1 levels did not correlate with height among
st men with familiar or sporadic prostate cancers. These findings provide e
vidence for the existence of growth-related risk factors for prostate cance
r, particularly for advanced and familial forms of this disease. The possib
le existence of inherited mechanisms affecting both somatic and tumour grow
th deserves further investigation. (C) 2000 Cancer Research Campaign.