SUO 2016: Inherited DNA-repair gene mutations in men with metastatic prostate cancer - Session Highlights


San Antonio, Texas USA (UroToday.com) Peter Nelson, University of Washington, discussed DNA-repair genetic variants in men with metastatic prostate cancer. Only 1-2% of the population have defects in DNA-repair genes, however, the prevalence is more common among metastatic prostate cancer patients with up to 8% having germline aberrations.


When analyzing seven case scenarios at 8 institutions, 12% of men had 1 or more germline DNA-repair mutations with remarkable concordance across study populations. In addition, 22% men had first-degree relative with prostate cancer. Limitations of the study include lack of generalizability to older patients (ie 70 years and older) and potential selection bias. In summary, with over 10% of men with metastatic prostate cancer may have DNA-repair mutations screening for these mutations are needed in this population. Potential applicability to early stage prostate cancer may have implications for selecting patients appropriate for active surveillance versus particular treatments. Future targeted therapies exploiting these mutations are warranted with current research underway.

Presented by: Peter Nelson, University of Washington

Written By: Stephen B. Williams, MD and Ashish M. Kamat

17th Annual Meeting of the Society of Urologic Oncology - November 30 -December 2, 2016 – San Antonio, Texas USA