CORRELATION OF SERUM ZINC WITH GLEASON SCORE AS A MARKER FOR PROSTATE CANCER AGGRESSIVENESS IN JOS.
- 1Jos University Teaching Hospital
Abstract
BACKGROUNDProstate cancer is a significant worldwide health issue. The prostate contains the highest zinc concentration among the bodys soft tissues. Zinc inhibits energy production, growth, and proliferation in normal prostate cells while suppressing the malignant potential and angiogenesis that are essential to prostate cancer aggressiveness. The study aimed to determine the correlation of serum zinc with Gleason score as a marker for prostate cancer aggressiveness
METHODOLOGYThis was a hospital-based cross-sectional analytical study carried out on forty-two (42) eligible participants with newly diagnosed histologically confirmed prostate adenocarcinoma over one year. The patients were fully evaluated, and 5 mL of venous blood was collected into a plain Vacutainer tube, and a colorimetric test was conducted using Atomic Absorption Spectrometry (AAS). Data for each participant were recorded on a pro forma using KoboCollect software.
The Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) version 25 was used for data analysis. All descriptive variables were presented as proportions and numbers. Shapiro-Wilk testing was employed for normality of continuous variables, presented either as median and interquartile range or mean and standard deviation. Spearmans rank correlation was used to assess the relationship between serum zinc and prostate cancer aggressiveness as measured by the Gleason score. The impact of serum zinc level on the aggressiveness of severe prostate cancer was assessed using a binary regression model, adjusting for age as a confounder in the logistic regression model. A statistically significant P-value was set at [≤] 0.05.
RESULTSThe mean age of participants was 67.12 {+/-} 9.68 years, with a range of 45-90 years. High-grade disease (Gleason [≥]8) was the most common, representing 57.1% of patients. The median serum zinc concentration was 71.5 {micro}g/dL, with an interquartile range of 47.6-88.5 {micro}g/dL. A statistically significant inverse correlation was observed between serum zinc and Gleason score (Spearman {rho} = -0.514, p < 0.001). Reduced zinc levels were significantly associated with higher Gleason scores (Mann-Whitney U = 140.0, p = 0.002). Low serum zinc independently predicted high-grade disease after adjusting for age.
CONCLUSIONThis study found a statistically significant inverse correlation between serum zinc concentrations and Gleason score in men with prostate cancer. This finding indicates that reduced serum zinc levels are associated with higher Gleason scores.
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BibTeX
@misc{kwarshak2026correlation,
title = {{CORRELATION OF SERUM ZINC WITH GLEASON SCORE AS A MARKER FOR PROSTATE CANCER AGGRESSIVENESS IN JOS.}},
author = {Y. K. Kwarshak and N. K. Dakum and C. O. ofoha and I. C. akpayak and V. M. Ramyil and S. I. Shuaibu and Z. Z. Galam},
howpublished = {medRxiv},
year = {2026},
month = sep,
doi = {10.64898/2026.09.16.26362193},
url = {https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.64898/2026.09.16.26362193v1},
note = {CC BY},
}
RIS
TY - UNPB
TI - CORRELATION OF SERUM ZINC WITH GLEASON SCORE AS A MARKER FOR PROSTATE CANCER AGGRESSIVENESS IN JOS.
AU - Y. K. Kwarshak
AU - N. K. Dakum
AU - C. O. ofoha
AU - I. C. akpayak
AU - V. M. Ramyil
AU - S. I. Shuaibu
AU - Z. Z. Galam
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/09/16
PB - medRxiv
DO - 10.64898/2026.09.16.26362193
UR - https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.64898/2026.09.16.26362193v1
AB - BACKGROUNDProstate cancer is a significant worldwide health issue. The prostate contains the highest zinc concentration among the bodys soft tissues. Zinc inhibits energy production, growth, and proliferation in normal prostate cells while suppressing the malignant potential and angiogenesis that are essential to prostate cancer aggressiveness. The study aimed to determine the correlation of serum zinc with Gleason score as a marker for prostate cancer aggressiveness METHODOLOGYThis was a hospital-based cross-sectional analytical study carried out on forty-two (42) eligible participants with newly diagnosed histologically confirmed prostate adenocarcinoma over one year. The patients were fully evaluated, and 5 mL of venous blood was collected into a plain Vacutainer tube, and a colorimetric test was conducted using Atomic Absorption Spectrometry (AAS). Data for each participant were recorded on a pro forma using KoboCollect software. The Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) version 25 was used for data analysis. All descriptive variables were presented as proportions and numbers. Shapiro-Wilk testing was employed for normality of continuous variables, presented either as median and interquartile range or mean and standard deviation. Spearmans rank correlation was used to assess the relationship between serum zinc and prostate cancer aggressiveness as measured by the Gleason score. The impact of serum zinc level on the aggressiveness of severe prostate cancer was assessed using a binary regression model, adjusting for age as a confounder in the logistic regression model. A statistically significant P-value was set at [≤] 0.05. RESULTSThe mean age of participants was 67.12 {+/-} 9.68 years, with a range of 45-90 years. High-grade disease (Gleason [≥]8) was the most common, representing 57.1% of patients. The median serum zinc concentration was 71.5 {micro}g/dL, with an interquartile range of 47.6-88.5 {micro}g/dL. A statistically significant inverse correlation was observed between serum zinc and Gleason score (Spearman {rho} = -0.514, p < 0.001). Reduced zinc levels were significantly associated with higher Gleason scores (Mann-Whitney U = 140.0, p = 0.002). Low serum zinc independently predicted high-grade disease after adjusting for age. CONCLUSIONThis study found a statistically significant inverse correlation between serum zinc concentrations and Gleason score in men with prostate cancer. This finding indicates that reduced serum zinc levels are associated with higher Gleason scores.
ER -