Risk Factors for Testicular Cancer
A risk factor makes the chances of getting a disease or health problem higher.
You can have testicular cancer with or without them. But the more risk factors you have, the greater the chances it can start.
You may not have control over some risks such as your age. While testicular cancer is more common in men aged 20 to 35 years old, it can happen in older men. But risk goes down with age.
Your chances are also higher for:
- Health problems such as:
- Undescended testicles—They migrate from the belly to the scrotum before birth. Some boys are born with their testicles still in the belly. This can be fixed with surgery.
- You've had this type of cancer before
- HIV infection
- Men in your family have had this cancer—Risk may be higher if your brother or father had or has it.
- Genetic syndromes such as:
- Ethnicity—Testicular cancer is more common in White men who live in the US and Europe.
REFERENCES:
General information about testicular cancer. National Cancer Institute website. Available at: https://www.cancer.gov/types/testicular/patient/testicular-treatment-pdq#link/_1. Accessed October 1, 2020.
Risk factors for testicular cancer. American Cancer Society website. Available at: https://www.cancer.org/cancer/testicular-cancer/causes-risks-prevention/risk-factors.html. Accessed October 1, 2020.
Testicular cancer. EBSCO DynaMed website. Available at:http://www.dynamed.com/topics/dmp~AN~T907377/Testicular-cancer. Accessed October 1, 2020.
What causes testicular cancer? Urology Care Foundation website. Available at: https://www.urologyhealth.org/urologic-conditions/testicular-cancer/causes. Accessed October 1, 2020.
Last reviewed September 2020 by EBSCO Medical Review Board Mohei Abouzied, MD, FACP Last Updated: 12/4/2020