Key clinical point: Certain hematological parameters may predict the risk for prostate cancer in primary care.

Major finding: Higher red blood cell (hazard ratio [HR] per 1 standard deviation [SD] increase, 1.09; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.05-1.13) and platelet counts (HR per 1 SD increase, 1.07; 95% CI, 1.04-1.11) were associated with an increased risk for prostate cancer. Higher white blood cell count (HR per 1 SD increase, 1.14; 95% CI, 1.05-1.24) and neutrophil count (HR per 1 SD increase, 1.27; 95% CI, 1.09-1.48) were associated with prostate cancer mortality.

Study details: The study analyzed complete blood counts of 209,686 men from the UK Biobank without a cancer diagnosis at baseline. Of these, 5,723 men were diagnosed with prostate cancer after a follow-up of 6.8 years.

Disclosures: Data analysis for the study was supported by Cancer Research UK grants. E Watts was supported by the Nuffield Department of Population Health Early Career Research Fellowship. The authors declared no conflicts of interest.