CCR5 proinflammatory allele in prostate cancer risk: a pilot study in patients and centenarians from Sicily

Prostate cancer (PCa) is the most common malignant neoplasm in older men in Western countries. The number of affected older men is increasing. Therefore, strategies for prevention of prostate cancer are crucial. To this purpose it is essential to know themechanisms involved in development and progression of this malignancy. Recently, an increasing body of genetic and epidemiological studies proposed new hypotheses for prostate carcinogenesis. It has been suggested that genetic factors as well as exposure to environmental factors such as infectious agents, dietary carcinogens, and hormonal imbalances participate in PCa development. Besides, chronic inflammation plays a key role in PCa. Taking into consideration this complex scenario, in the present study we evaluated whether CCR5 32 deletion of CCR5 gene might be associated with PCa susceptibility. For the control group we used centenarians, since they represent a disease-free human model. These preliminary results suggest that the CCR5 32 antiinflammatory variant might be a resistance factor for the development of PCa.