Age

• Prostate cancer is rare before age 40, occurring only in one of over 19,000 men, according to the National Cancer Institute. The risk rises sharply after age 40, with one in 45 men aged 40 to 59, and one in seven men aged 60 to 79 developing prostate cancer.
  
  

Race

• Prostate cancer is more prevalent in African-American men than in those of other races. Non-Hispanic white men have the next highest risk.
  
  

Nationality

• Prostate cancer occurs most frequently in North America, northwestern Europe, the Caribbean Islands and Australia. It has a low occurrence in Africa, Asia, and Central and South America. The American Cancer Society (ACS) notes that lifestyle differences may play a role in this difference.
  
  

Diet

• According to the ACS, studies indicate that men who eat large amounts of red meat or high-fat dairy products and low amounts of fruits and vegetables have a slightly increased risk of prostate cancer.
  
  

Weight

• Although exercise has not been linked to lower risks of prostate cancer, obesity is associated with a higher risk.
  
  

Genetics

• Prostate cancer seems to have a genetic link, because close relatives of men with prostate cancer are more likely to get it. A man with a brother or father with prostate cancer has over twice the risk of developing the disease as a man with no prostate cancer in his family.