Black Veterans have higher a incidence of localized and metastatic prostate cancer compared to White Veterans yet are underrepresented in reports of frequencies of somatic and germline alterations. This retrospective analysis of somatic and putative germline alterations was conducted in a large cohort of Veterans with prostate cancer (N = 835 Black, 1613 White) who underwent next generation sequencing through the VA Precision Oncology Program, which facilitates molecular testing for Veterans with metastatic cancer. No differences were observed in gene alterations for FDA approved targetable therapies (13.5% in Black Veterans vs. 15.5% in White Veterans, P = .21), nor in any potentially actionable alterations (25.5% vs. 28.7%, P =.1). Black Veterans had higher rates of BRAF (5.5% vs. 2.6%, P < .001) alterations, White Veterans TMPRSS2 fusions (27.2% vs. 11.7%, P < .0001). Putative germline alteration rates were higher in White Veterans (12.0% vs. 6.1%, P < .0001). Racial disparities in outcome are unlikely attributable to acquired somatic alterations in actionable pathways.
The oncologist. 2023 Apr 21 [Epub ahead of print]
Luca F Valle, Nicholas G Nickols, Ryan Hausler, Patrick R Alba, Tori Anglin-Foote, Cristina Perez, Kosj Yamoah, Brent S Rose, Michael J Kelley, Scott L DuVall, Isla P Garraway, Kara N Maxwell, Julie A Lynch
Veterans Affairs Greater Los Angeles Healthcare System, Los Angeles, CA, USA., Department of Veterans Affairs Informatics and Computing Infrastructure, Department of Veterans Affairs Salt Lake City Health Care System, Salt Lake City, UT, USA., Department of Radiation Oncology, H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center & Research Institute, Tampa, FL, USA., Department of Radiation Oncology, University of California, San Diego, CA, USA., Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC, USA., Division of Hematology/Oncology, Department of Medicine, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA.