Prostate cancer outcomes comparable for transgender women, cisgender men

Most prostate cancer outcomes do not differ significantly between transgender women (TGW) and cisgender (CG) men, including prostate cancer-specific mortality, according to a study published online July 21 in Cancer.

Margaret Meagher, M.D., from the University of California San Diego School of Medicine in La Jolla, and colleagues compared oncological characteristics and survival outcomes between TGW and CG men with prostate cancer using data from the Veterans Affairs Informatics and Computing Infrastructure database (1999 to 2020) and the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results-Medicare database (2010 to 2017). The groups were matched in a 5:1 ratio (CG:TGW) based on age, race, year of diagnosis, and Charlson Comorbidity Index score. Data were included for 1,194 patients: 199 TGW and 995 CG.

The researchers found that there were no significant associations between transgender identity and metastatic presentation, high-risk localized disease, or prostate cancer-specific mortality. There was a significant association seen between transgender identity and improved overall survival.

“In contrast to previous studies, we did not detect worsened prostate cancer outcomes within [the transgender] community,” the authors write. “These conflicting data highlight the need for further investigation.”

Several authors disclosed ties to the biopharmaceutical industry.

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