آخر تحديث: 25 ديسمبر 2026

Prostate cancer is among the commonest cancers diagnosed in men, and most of the cancers found are slow-growing. It causes no symptoms in its early stages, which is why it is looked for with a blood test rather than waiting for something to go wrong. Men understandably want to know whether anything they do can lower their risk — and one particular study gets quoted more than any other in answer.

It is worth looking at properly, because it is more interesting and considerably weaker than the headlines suggest.

Illustration of the prostate gland, a cancer that causes no symptoms in its early stages
Early prostate cancer produces no symptoms at all, which is why it has to be looked for rather than waited for.

What the study found

A large prospective cohort study from the United States, published in 2016, followed nearly 32,000 men for eighteen years and asked them how often they ejaculated in their twenties and again in their forties.

Why this is not the same as a preventive measure

An earlier version of this article carried a caveat in the text saying the evidence was observational — and then answered yes, frequent ejaculation reduces prostate cancer risk in its own FAQ. The two contradicted each other, and the FAQ has been corrected. That matters, because the FAQ is the part search engines quote.

Three specific problems sit between this association and any claim of cause and effect:

The most telling point is the last line of the findings. Whatever the association represents, it does not touch aggressive prostate cancer — which is the only kind that determines whether a man lives or dies of this disease.

Men in their twenties and forties, the two ages at which ejaculation frequency was recorded in the study
Frequency was recorded at two points decades apart — a reasonable design, but still one that observes rather than tests.

So what should a man take from it?

Something reassuring, and not a target. There is no reason to think a normal sex life carries any prostate risk, and this study is decent evidence that it does not — a question men genuinely worry about and are often too embarrassed to ask. That is worth saying plainly.

What it is not is a number to hit. Treating 21 a month as a prescription reads far more into observational data than it can carry, and a man who cannot reach it has not failed at anything. An earlier version of this article presented the figure as actionable advice; it is better understood as a description of the group in whom the association was strongest.

The factors with better evidence behind them for cancer outcomes generally remain the dull ones — not smoking, keeping weight down, staying active — and they act on heart disease at the same time, which is what will actually kill most men. See also diet and prostate cancer, and what the evidence on lycopene really supports.

And about screening

Nothing described here changes the screening question, and the earlier version of this article overstated it by presenting PSA testing as a routine part of a health check for men over fifty.

Whether to have a PSA test is a decision, not a default. It depends on age, family history, ethnicity, general health, and — most of all — on what a man would want done with an abnormal result, since PSA testing leads to biopsies and to the detection of cancers that would never have caused trouble. It is a conversation worth having properly rather than a box to tick. That discussion is set out in should I have a PSA test.

Symptoms that need assessment regardless

None of the above applies to a man who already has symptoms. In an emergency in Thailand, call 1669.

الأسئلة المتكررة

Does frequent ejaculation reduce the risk of prostate cancer?

It has not been shown to. A large observational study found that men reporting the highest ejaculation frequency developed low- and intermediate-risk prostate cancer somewhat less often, but an association of that kind cannot establish cause and effect — sexual frequency travels alongside general health, partnership and testosterone, and early prostate disease itself reduces sexual activity years before diagnosis. An earlier version of this article answered this question with a plain yes, which was too strong.

Is 21 times a month a target I should aim for?

No. That figure describes the group in whom the association was strongest in one study; it is not a prescription and there is no evidence that reaching a particular count changes anything. A man whose frequency is lower has not done anything wrong.

Does it protect against aggressive prostate cancer?

No association was found with high-risk disease — which is the form responsible for almost all deaths from prostate cancer. This is the single most important limitation of the finding.

Should I have a PSA test?

That is a decision to make deliberately rather than a routine part of a health check. It depends on your age, family history, general health and what you would want done with an abnormal result, because PSA testing leads to biopsies and to finding cancers that would never have caused harm. An earlier version of this article presented it as a routine recommendation for men over fifty, which has been corrected.

Is there any prostate risk from a very active sex life?

There is no evidence of harm, and this study is reasonable reassurance on that point. Men ask about it far more often than they admit, and the answer is that a normal sex life at any frequency is not a prostate risk.

ترتيب استشارة

For a PSA discussion or prostate assessment, Dr. Soarawee Weerasopone sees patients at مقر مستشفى بانكوك وفي مستشفى سامิติج سريراشا في تشونبوري في 088-022-1445. Bring every previous PSA result with its date — the trend over time says more than any single number.

تتوفر خدمة الرعاية الصحية عن بعد من مستشفى بانكوك للمرضى غير القادرين على الحضور شخصياً، بما في ذلك المرضى الدوليين - يرجى ترتيب ذلك مسبقاً عن طريق البريد الإلكتروني مع قسم المسالك البولية على bhquro@bdms.co.th. مستشفى ساميتيفيج سيراتشا يقدم الخدمات حضورياً فقط. يتم الرد على الاستفسارات المتعلقة بالتكلفة من قبل المستشفى وليس من خلال هذا الموقع الإلكتروني.

إخلاء مسؤولية: تم كتابة هذا المحتوى ومراجعته من قبل الدكتور صواراوي فيراسوبون، وهو أخصائي مسالك بولية معتمد من البورد في المقر الرئيسي لمستشفي بانكوك، وهو مخصص للغرض التعليمي فقط. ولا يُعد نصيحة طبية أو تشخيصاً أو وصفة لأي فرد، كما لا يتم تقديم أي نصيحة أو تشخيص أو وصفة طبية من خلال قنوات الرسائل الشخصية أو وسائل التواصل الاجتماعي. لا يدير الدكتور صواراوي أي حساب عام على وسائل التواصل الاجتماعي؛ وأي حساب يقدم استشارة خاصة باسمه هو حساب احتيالي. في حالة الطوارئ في تايلاند، اتصل بـ 1669.

كتبه ومراجعته طبياً: الدكتور صواراوي فيراسوبون (الدكتور بوم) — أخصائي أمراض المسالك البولية معتمد من البورد، مستر هيدكوترز بانكوك، يعمل في ممارسة أمراض المسالك البولية منذ عام 2016. زمالة: جراحة الروبوت، مستشفى تشانغ غونغ التذكاري، تايوان (2019) · مراقب إكلينيكي: جراحة المسالك البولية بالمنظار، مستشفى جامعة جونديندو، طوكيو (2022) · باحث ومراقب إكلينيكي، قسم سكوت لأمراض المسالك البولية، كلية بايلور للطب، الولايات المتحدة الأمريكية (2025–2026).

arالعربية

اكتشاف المزيد من Dr. Soarawee Weerasopone — Urologist Bangkok

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