International Studies

International Meta-Analysis of Vasovasostomy and Prostate Cancer in Vasectomised Men

 

Collaborating Institutions

  • The Unviersity of Western Australia
  • Oxford University
  • Manitoba Centre for Health Policy
  • CancerCare Manitoba
  • Information Services Division, National Health Services Scotland
  • The University of British Columbia

Aim

To perform an international meta-analysis of vasovasostomy (vasectomy reversal) and prostate cancer in vasectomised men using linked hospital morbidity, cancer registration and death records to determine if vasectomy reversal protects against prostate cancer.

Background

This study will be a follow-up of a previous Western Australian data linkage study by one of this study’s Chief Investigators (Professor D’Arcy Holman)¹, which used linked hospital, death and cancer records to investigate the association between vasectomy, vasvasostomy and prostate cancer. The study founf the relative risk of prostate cancer to be reduced in vasectomised men who had a vasovastomy even upon adjusting for age. However, due to the small number of men who had a reversal, the results of the project were deemed inconclusive and the authors of the study called for other international data linkage centres (Canada and United Kingdom) to pool data to perform the large international meta-analysis, as indicated above.

Status

The University of Western Australia has had their human ethics application approved and have applied for the linked data from the Western Australian Data Linkage Unit. Each of the other participating institutions will submit their own ethics and data linkage applications to access linked health data in their country to increase the sample size.

 

¹ Borgmeier I, Holman CDJ. Does Vasectomy Reversal Protect against Prostate Cancer? AEP Vol. 14, No. 10 LETTER 749 November 2004: 748- 749.

 

Other topic areas

 

The topic areas of child maltreatment and ambulatory sensitive care conditions are still at the top of the list of the IHDLN for international comparable data linkage studies. If you would like to champion these projects or be involved, please contact victoria.gray@health.wa.gov.au directly, who may be able to assist with sourcing funding, assessing what countries and data linkage centres can participate, collating what data and variables are available and putting together the joint international grant application.

If you have any other ideas for international studies or would like more information about any of the above please contact victoria.gray@health.wa.gov.au.