The Rationale for Investigating DNA-PK as a Target in Prostate Cancer

Karen E. Knudsen, PhD, chair and Hilary Koprowski Professor, Department of Cancer Biology, professor of cancer biology, urology, medical oncology, and radiation oncology, and enterprise director, Sidney Kimmel Cancer Center, Thomas Jefferson University Hospital, discusses the rationale for investigating DNA-dependent protein kinase (DNA-PK) as a target in prostate cancer.

DNA-PK gene encoding alterations have the potential to inform which patients have indolent versus metastatic prostate cancer, explains Knudsen.

In other tumor types, variants of DNA-PK suggest are strongly associated with disease development and aggressive disease, says Knudsen. Additionally, some data suggest that DNA-PK alterations are particularly significant in African American women.

As DNA-PK has not been widely investigated in prostate cancer, research efforts are needed to determine its role in the space.