Dr. Shore on the Importance of Genetic Testing in Prostate Cancer

Neal Shore, MD, FACS, U.S. chief medical officer of Surgery and Oncology, GenesisCare, director, CPI, Carolina Urologic Research Center, discusses the importance of incorporating genetic testing into treatment strategies for patients with prostate cancer. 

Genetic testing has historically occupied a more theoretical niche in prostate cancer treatment, Shore states. However, identifying specific genetic mutations can help guide treatment decisions in prostate cancer and identify patients and their family members who may be at risk of developing other types of cancer, Shore continues.

In prostate cancer, approximately 10% to 12% of patients with high-risk localized disease, inclusive of metastatic disease, and/or a significant family history will harbor a homologous recombinant repair (HRR) alteration, Shore notes.

Patients who carry a heritable HRR gene mutation, such as BRCA, could therefore be successfully identified through screening, allowing family members to undergo cascade testing, Shore continues. This could enable earlier identification of prostate cancer and other known BRCA-mutated cancers in family members carrying the mutation, Shore concludes.