TUESDAY, Feb. 2 (HealthDay News) -- A diagnosis of prostate cancer can be unnerving enough to up a man's odds for either suicide or fatal heart attack, new research indicates.

"Unfortunately, the study results didn't surprise us," said study co-author Dr. Lorelei A. Mucci, an assistant professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School. "A cancer diagnosis is an acutely distressful event, and acute stress can cause a number of changes in cardiovascular risk factors. Also, if someone has an underlying health condition, the diagnosis may be enough to drive someone to suicide."