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Racial/ethnic differences in serum sex steroid hormone concentrations in US adolescent males

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Abstract

Objective

Contrary to the hypothesis that the racial/ethnic disparity in prostate cancer has a hormonal basis, we did not observe a difference in serum testosterone concentration between non-Hispanic black and white men in the Third National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES III), although non-Hispanic black men had a higher estradiol level. Unexpectedly, Mexican–American men had the highest testosterone level. Next, we evaluated whether the same patterns are observed during adolescence, the time of prostate maturation.

Methods

We measured serum testosterone, estradiol, and sex hormone-binding globulin (SHBG) by immunoassay in 134 males aged 12–19 in NHANES III. Mean concentrations were compared by race/ethnicity adjusting for age, Tanner stage, percent body fat, waist, physical activity, tobacco smoke, and the other hormones.

Results

After multivariable adjustment, in the 12–15-year-old males, testosterone concentration was lower in non-Hispanic blacks than whites (p = 0.043), SHBG concentration did not significantly differ between the two groups. Mexican–Americans had the highest testosterone (versus non-Hispanic black: p = 0.002) and lowest SHBG (versus non-Hispanic white: p = 0.010; versus non-Hispanic black: p = 0.047) concentrations. Estradiol concentration was lower in non-Hispanic blacks (p = 0.11) and Mexican–Americans (p = 0.033) compared with non-Hispanic whites. After multivariable adjustment, in the 16–19-year-old males, testosterone, estradiol, and SHBG concentrations did not differ between non-Hispanic blacks and whites. Mexican–Americans had the highest testosterone concentration (versus non-Hispanic white: p = 0.08), but did not differ from the other groups on estradiol and SHBG concentrations. In both age groups, these patterns were generally present, but less pronounced after adjusting for age and Tanner stage only.

Conclusion

In adolescent males, non-Hispanic blacks did not have a higher testosterone concentration than non-Hispanic whites, and Mexican–Americans had the highest testosterone concentration, patterns similar to adult males.

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Acknowledgments

We thank Gary Bradwin in the laboratory of Dr. Nader Rifai at Children’s Hospital Boston. This is the 21st paper from the Hormone Demonstration Program funded by the Maryland Cigarette Restitution Fund at Johns Hopkins. D. Lopez and C. Joshu were supported by a National Research Service Award T32 CA009314 from the National Cancer Institute, NIH.

Conflict of interest

The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the National Cancer Institute or the National Institutes of Health.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Epidemiology, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, MD, USA

    David S. Lopez, Sarah B. Peskoe, Corinne E. Joshu, Manning Feinleib, Elizabeth Selvin & Elizabeth A. Platz

  2. Division of Epidemiology, Human Genetics and Environmental Sciences, University of Texas School of Public Health, 1200 Herman Pressler, Suite E-629, Houston, TX, 77030, USA

    David S. Lopez

  3. Division of Endocrinology and Metabolism, Department of Medicine, Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA

    Adrian Dobs

  4. Sidney Kimmel Comprehensive Cancer Center at Johns Hopkins, Baltimore, MD, USA

    Adrian Dobs, Norma Kanarek, William G. Nelson & Elizabeth A. Platz

  5. Department of Environmental Health Sciences, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, MD, USA

    Norma Kanarek & William G. Nelson

  6. James Buchanan Brady Urological Institute, Johns Hopkins Medical Institutions, Baltimore, MD, USA

    William G. Nelson & Elizabeth A. Platz

  7. Departments of Oncology, Pathology, Pharmacology and Molecular Sciences, Radiation Oncology and Molecular Radiation Sciences, Johns Hopkins Medical Institutions, Baltimore, MD, USA

    William G. Nelson

  8. Department of Cancer Epidemiology and Prevention, Institute of Social and Preventive Medicine, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland

    Sabine Rohrmann

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  1. David S. Lopez
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Correspondence to David S. Lopez.

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Lopez, D.S., Peskoe, S.B., Joshu, C.E. et al. Racial/ethnic differences in serum sex steroid hormone concentrations in US adolescent males. Cancer Causes Control 24, 817–826 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10552-013-0154-8

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