Circumcision Could Cut Risk of Prostate Cancer

There may be a new weapon in the fight against prostate cancer: circumcision. A study finds that men circumcised before their first time having sex had a 15% lower risk of the disease, NPR reports. That could be because cancer can be linked to infection. Prostate inflammation caused by an infection can ultimately cause DNA damage as the body responds. And circumcision appears to reduce infection rates.

Still, the two groups in the study—one with cancer, one without—weren't all that different: In the non-cancer group, 69% had been circumcised before their first intercourse, compared to 65% in the cancer group. "I would not go out and advocate for widespread circumcision to prevent prostate cancer," says a study author. "We see an association, but it doesn't prove causality." (More circumcision stories.)