A recent study revealed that heavy drinking is a double- edged sword for men. It not only increases the risk of prostate cancer, but also makes the drug finasteride ineffective, which can help lower a man's risk against the disease.

The research team, led by Dr. Zhihong Gong, of the University of California at San Francisco, analyzed data collected from 11,000 men. During the study span, 2,219 men were diagnosed with prostate cancer.

The research team examined the association between total alcohol, type of alcoholic beverage, and drinking pattern with risks of total, low- and high-grade prostate cancer.

Data analysis revealed that men who drank heavily (four or more drinks per day, on at least five days out of the week) have two times greater risk of developing aggressive prostate tumors, as compared to the non-drinkers. However, less heavy drinking was not associated with risk.

Comparison of drinking patterns with treatment outcome among men enrolled on the placebo-controlled trial of finasteride indicted that heavy drinking makes the drug finastride ineffective in reducing prostate cancer risk. However, finasteride cuts non-drinkers' and moderate drinkers' risk by 43 percent, when it came to less aggressive, slower-growing prostate tumors.

The researchers concluded: "Physicians may choose to consider this finding when counseling men on reducing their risk of prostate cancer."