Dr. Oh on Challenges With Developing Novel Targeted Agents in Prostate Cancer

William K. Oh, MD, chief of the Division of Hematology and Medical Oncology at the Mount Sinai Health System; deputy director of the Tisch Cancer Institute; professor of medicine and urology and Ezra M. Greenspan, MD Professor in Clinical Cancer Therapeutics at Mount Sinai Hospital, discusses challenges with developing novel targeted agents in prostate cancer.

In terms of finding novel targets for prostate cancer, the field remains a little uncertain, says Oh. For example, investigators know that p53 mutations, PTEN loss, and TMPRSS2-ERG fusions are all very common; however, they have not been able to identify ways to specifically target these potential markers. This has been the biggest challenge faced in the space, according to Oh. Investigators also are aware that DNA damage repair mutations lead to a targetable and actionable mutation, but so far, only a small percentage of the biomarkers are helping to inform the decision of which treatment should be given to which patient, concludes Oh.