Prostate cancer as a multifactorial disorder; an overview of different sides of disease

Prostate cancer is the most common cancer in males and the second leading cause of death after lung cancer. Prostate tumors are sometimes benign, but malignant ones are clinically divided into two categories. The first group, which appears as a mass with no invasion to other tissues, is known as non-invasive tumors. The second group which causes the majority of mortality is known as invasive tumors. If normal cells are not needed, the process of apoptosis occurs. Two critical signalling pathways called mTOR / AKT / PI3K and ERK / MEK / Raf / Ras play a key role in regulating the growth of cancer cells. Typically, the Phosphatase and tensin homologue (PTEN) protein blocks the PI3K / AKT / MTOR pathway when the cell is ready for apoptosis. In some prostate cancers, the gene makes the PTEN protein mutate, so the PI3K / AKT / MTOR pathway remains active, and the cancer cells lose their apoptotic ability. Thus, gene mutations can be an essential factor in the development of prostate cancer. In this review, different aspects of prostate cancer are evaluated as a multifactorial disorder.