Perceived risk and worry about prostate cancer: a proposed conceptual model.

Prostate cancer is one of the most common forms of cancer among American men, and worry about the disease has psychological, behavioral, and biological consequences. To better understand prostate cancer-specific worry, the authors tested a model of the interrelationships among family history of prostate cancer; perceived risk of and worry about prostate cancer; and perceived risk of and worry about other diseases. Men who attended prostate cancer-screening appointments at a general urology practice (n=209) were given a brief anonymous self-report measure. Structural equation modeling (LISREL) results indicated: (1) perceived risk of prostate cancer mediated the relationship between family history of prostate cancer and prostate cancer worry; (2) perceived risk of other diseases increased perceived risk of prostate cancer; and (3) prostate cancer worry and increased other disease worry.