Testicular cancer rates are on the rise in men of all ages, and a surprisingly high rate of Testicular Germ Cell Tumors (TGCTs) are being found in men as young as 15. Scientists believe that men who smoke marijuana at a young age are more likely to develop TGCTs and testicular cancer later in life.
Scientists have reason to believe that men are most vulnerable to TGCTs during puberty, which is also the age that marijuana use is highest. The study included 163 men in Los Angeles county that had been diagnosed with TGCT. It found that people who had used marijuana (even if it was seldom use) had twice the risk of developing tumors than those who had never tried it.
Testicular cancer is historically very common in younger men, and carries a more severe prognosis than many other cancers. It is the most common form of cancer in men under the age of 45.
Victoria Cortessis, assistant professor of preventative medicine at USC, said “we do not know what marijuana triggers in the testis that may lead to carcinogenesis, although we speculate that it may be acting through the endocannabinoid system, the cellular network that responds to the active ingredient in marijuana, since the system has been shown to be important in the formation of sperm”.
This is not a new discovery, for researchers in 2009 found a link between cannabis and the most aggressive and fast growing form of testicular cancer.
Men who began smoking more than once per week in their teens were at the highest risk.
Another recent study found that men who had a history of cocaine use were at a lower risk of testicular cancer, although it was also found to kill sperm-making cells. Higher cocaine use was linked to infertility in men.
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