How Coffee Affects Prostate Cancer Risk, Progression, and Recurrence
Published on September 15, 2026
ON THIS PAGE
ON THIS PAGE
Coffee has been linked to many health benefits over the years, from a lower risk of heart disease and type 2 diabetes to a lower risk of kidney disease and liver disease.
Now research is investigating how coffee consumption affects not only the risk of prostate cancer — which will affect about 1 in 8 men over the course of their lifetimes — but whether it can prevent recurrence or progression.
While most prostate cancer risk factors, such as your age and family history of the disease, are out of your hands, you can control other factors — starting with what you do or don’t drink in the mornings.
Next up video playing in 10 seconds
7 Healthy Things to Add to Your Coffee Ranked
Level up your coffee game with these seven additions!
Read MoreThe Coffee and Prostate Cancer Risk Connection: What the Science Says
Some research finds that drinking coffee every day might help reduce prostate cancer risk.
For example, one research review of nearly 58,000 prostate cancer cases found that the people who drank the most coffee were less likely to be diagnosed with prostate cancer than those who drank the least. They were also less likely to have late-stage or fatal prostate cancer. For every additional cup of coffee participants drank per day, the risk of prostate cancer dropped by almost 1 percent.
The research did have some caveats, including that many of the studies relied on people’s own reports of how much coffee they drank, which may not have been entirely accurate.
When it comes to prostate cancer progression and recurrence, the evidence is mixed. In an older study on prostate cancer survivors, those who drank four or more cups of coffee a day before their diagnosis had a 59 percent lower risk of recurrence or progression than those who drank one or fewer cups per week.
But newer research hasn’t been as positive. One 2022 study, which examined more than 400 men with early-stage prostate cancer, didn’t find any association “between caffeinated coffee intake and rates of cancer progressing,” says Justin R. Gregg, MD, a coauthor of the study and an associate professor of urology oncology at the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston.
The effects of coffee may differ depending on a person’s genes, Dr. Gregg and his team found. Drinking a lot of coffee was linked to longer prostate cancer survival in another study published in 2023, but only among men with a gene that helps them metabolize caffeine faster.
How Might Coffee Help Fight Prostate Cancer?
Researchers don’t know for sure how coffee might protect against prostate cancer, but the benefits may be found among a few particular compounds.
- Antioxidants Coffee contains caffeine and natural plant compounds called polyphenols. These antioxidants help prevent the DNA damage that can lead to cancer development and progression.
- Anti-inflammatory Substances Some of the compounds found in coffee beans (including cafestol and kahweol) and the chemicals that form when coffee beans are roasted (such as melanoids) may reduce inflammation, which contributes to prostate cancer development.
- Insulin Coffee might change the body’s response to insulin, a hormone that moves glucose (sugar) from the bloodstream into the cells. Insulin resistance is linked to prostate cancer development.
- Compounds Affecting Hormone Metabolism Caffeinated coffee is linked to higher levels of globulin, a protein that binds to sex hormones, which might help balance levels of testosterone and other sex hormones connected to prostate cancer.
These are just theories, though. “It is still not known what effects compounds in coffee may have directly on prostate cancer cells, or in a prostate cancer patient’s body, that may impact prostate cancer risk,” Gregg says. Also, the chemical composition of coffee can vary a lot depending on how beans are farmed, processed, and roasted.
Caffeine vs. Decaf
It’s hard to know for sure how much effect the caffeine in coffee has on the risk of prostate cancer, in part because less research has been done on decaf.
“Some studies suggest that protective effects may be present in decaffeinated coffee, as well,” says Gregg. In one study, men with prostate cancer who drank decaf coffee had lower odds of their prostate cancer progressing than men who didn’t drink any coffee at all.
How Much Coffee Should You Drink?
There’s no amount of coffee that’s been proven to prevent prostate cancer, its progression, or recurrence. But so far, research has linked more cups of coffee each day with lower prostate cancer risks.
Loading up those extra cups of coffee with sugar, flavored syrups, and sweet creamers could erase any benefit, though, since too much sugar intake may increase the risk for prostate cancer. Plus, too much caffeine (more than 400 milligrams a day, or the amount in two to three cups of coffee) can cause side effects like heart palpitations, high blood pressure, insomnia, anxiety, upset stomach, and jitters.
Regardless of how much coffee you do (or don’t) drink, there are other ways to lower your risk, including maintaining a healthy weight, eating a balanced diet, and exercising.
“We would not recommend changing habits surrounding coffee for the purposes of preventing or treating prostate cancer,” Gregg says. “Rather, it’s important to speak with your doctor about PSA screening.” If you are diagnosed with prostate cancer, your urologist or oncologist will go over the recommended treatment options.
Resources We Trust
- Mayo Clinic: Prostate Cancer Prevention: Ways to Reduce Your Risk
- National Cancer Institute: Prostate Cancer Prevention (PDQ)—Patient Version
- Cancer Research UK: Diet and Prostate Cancer
- Zero Prostate Cancer: Prostate Cancer Recurrence
- MedlinePlus: Prostate-Specific Antigen (PSA) Test
EDITORIAL SOURCES
Everyday Health follows strict sourcing guidelines to ensure the accuracy of its content, outlined in our editorial policy. We use only trustworthy sources, including peer-reviewed studies, board-certified medical experts, patients with lived experience, and information from top institutions.
Resources
- Suzuki T et al. Coffee’s Impact on Health and Well-Being. Nutrients. August 5, 2025.
- Chen X et al. Coffee Consumption and Risk of Prostate Cancer: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. BMJ Open. January 7, 2021.
- Key Statistics for Prostate Cancer. American Cancer Society. January 13, 2026.
- Prostate Cancer Risk Factors. American Cancer Society. November 22, 2023.
- Geybels MS et al. Coffee and Tea Consumption in Relation to Prostate Cancer Prognosis. Cancer Causes & Control. May 1, 2014.
- Gregg JR et al. Coffee, Caffeine Metabolism Genotype, and Disease Progression in Localized Prostate Cancer Patients Managed with Active Surveillance. Journal of Urology. December 29, 2022.
- Gregg JR et al. Coffee Intake, Caffeine Metabolism Genotype, and Survival Among Men with Prostate Cancer. European Urology Oncology. June 2023.
- Montenegro J et al. Molecular Mechanisms of Coffee on Prostate Cancer Prevention. Biomed Research International. April 22, 2022.
- Langlais CS et al. Post-Diagnostic Coffee and Tea Consumption and Risk of Prostate Cancer Progression by Smoking History. Cancer Causes & Control. April 9, 2021.
- Miles FL et al. Concentrated Sugars and Incidence of Prostate Cancer in a Prospective Cohort. British Journal of Nutrition. September 5, 2018.
- Spilling the Beans: How Much Coffee Is Too Much? U.S. Food and Drug Administration. August 28, 2024.
Meet Our Experts
Tawee Tanvetyanon, MD, MPH
Medical Reviewer
Tawee Tanvetyanon, MD, MPH, is a professor of oncologic sciences and senior member at H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center and Morsani College of Medicine at the University of South Florid...
Stephanie Watson
Author
Stephanie Watson is a freelance health writer who has contributed to WebMD, AARP.org, BabyCenter, Forbes Health, Fortune Well, Time, Self, Arthritis Today, Greatist, Healthgrades, ...