Truck Drivers at Increased Risk for Aggressive Prostate Cancer, Study Suggests

Truck drivers may face a higher risk of developing an aggressive prostate cancer, according to a new study presented at the American Association for Cancer Research.

With previous studies suggesting a link between whole-body vibration (WBV) and prostate cancer risk, researchers from the National Cancer Institute, University of North Carolina, Louisiana State University and the Roswell park Cancer Institute decided to take a look at data from more than 2,000 men included in the North Carolina-Louisiana Prostate Cancer Project.

The results showed that truck drivers faced an aggressive prostate cancer risk four times greater than educators, which they used as the baseline, Medical Daily reported.

"Truck drivers are on the road for a long period of time," researcher Dr. L. Joseph Su told The Huffington Post, adding that "older trucks have a lot of vibration and bumping of the engine. Long-term vibration from the engine, which is right next to your prostate, for a long period of time," could be putting drivers at risk.

The study does not rule out other possible lifestyle behaviors, including the fact that truck drivers live a largely sedentary lifestyle and have limited food access.

"That's something that I plan to ... look at with my colleagues," Su said.

In addition, a 2009 study found that individuals who spent half of their working day sitting had a 20 percent lower risk of developing prostate cancer than men who spent their entire day in a chair.

"Findings from this study show that not sitting for most of the time during work or occupational activity and longer daily durations of the main component of active living (walking or cycling) may be associated with reduced prostate cancer incidence," the authors wrote, according to the Daily Mail.

According to the National Cancer Institute, an estimated 238,590 new cases of prostate cancer will have been identified in the United States by the end of the year, while just under 30,000 will have died as a result of the disease during this same time period.