Breast cancer gene increases prostate cancer risk four-fold: research
A faulty gene that increases the chances of breast cancer in women has been found to raise the risk of prostate cancer in men four-fold.
A gene that increases the chances of developing breast cancer has also been found to raise the chance of prostate cancer in men, a study has found. Photo: ALAMY
7:00AM BST 21 Apr 2012
Men with a strong family history of either cancer in their family could be offered genetic tests to discover if they are carrying a faulty BRCA1 gene so their health can be monitored from an early age.
Men with the BRCA1 gene have a one in 11 chance of developing prostate cancer by the age of 65, it was found.
The faulty gene seemed to be linked to a particularly agressive form of cancer making early detection and treatment vital.
The study was conducted by the The Institute of Cancer Research and The Royal Marsden NHS Foundation Trust and published in the British Journal of Cancer.
In breast cancer BRCA1 increases the chances of developing the disease by five fold, giving them a six in ten chance of breast cancer compared with a one in eight chance for healthy women.
It has led some women with faulty genes to have preemptive mastectomies rather than live with high risk of breast cancer.
BRCA1 is also associated with ovarian cancer.
Emma Malcolm, chief executive of the charity Prostate Action, which co-funded the study, said: "Early detection of prostate cancer can vastly improve the chances of successful treatment but at the moment there isn’t an effective way of screening for the disease.
"We’ve long known about the link between breast cancer and prostate cancer and this research confirms the likelihood of men developing prostate cancer from the inherited faulty BRCA1 gene.
"Once gene testing becomes faster and cheaper we may be able to identify those men at a higher risk of prostate cancer and monitor them from an early age."
Study author Professor Ros Eeles, from The Institute of Cancer Research, said: "Until now there has been some doubt as to whether mutations in the BRCA1 gene increase the risk of prostate cancer.
"This large study has shown that men with prostate cancer have a one in 200 chance of having an alteration of this gene and men with this alteration have a 3.8 fold increased risk of developing the disease.
"This translates as nearly nine per cent risk of prostate cancer by the age of 65. The important thing about this result is that there are drugs that can target specific defects that occur with the BRCA1 mutation and this kind of result can open up the possibility of targeted medicines based on genetics."
In the study 913 men underwent genetic screening, with results obtained from 886 and four men were found to have alterations in BRCA1. Three out of those four men were diagnosed with prostate cancer before the age of 65.
As well as detecting BRCA1 in men with a history of cancer in their families to identify those at greater risk, genetic screening of men who already have the disease could improve their treatment, the researchers said.
There are already drugs in use that target BRCA1.
The findings come after other research showed that HIFU (high intensity focused ultrasound) can provide the 'perfect' outcome for nine out of ten men with early stage prostate cancer. The majority of men treated were continent, had good sexual function and were free of cancer after 12 months where as traditional surgery or radiotherapy could only offer that in half of cases.
Prostate cancer is the most common cancers affecting men in Britain with 37,000 men diagnosed each year.
It claims 10,000 lives every year.
Despite this, recent research shows that seven out of ten men know absolutely nothing about the disease or its symptoms.
Other faulty genes have been implicated in prostate cancer including a mutation in HOXB13 which increased the risk of the disease 20 fold. It is relatively rare, occuring in less than two per cent of men with prostate cancer.
BRCA1 is also associated with ovarian cancer.
Emma Malcolm, chief executive of the charity Prostate Action, which co-funded the study, said: "Early detection of prostate cancer can vastly improve the chances of successful treatment but at the moment there isn’t an effective way of screening for the disease.
"We’ve long known about the link between breast cancer and prostate cancer and this research confirms the likelihood of men developing prostate cancer from the inherited faulty BRCA1 gene.
"Once gene testing becomes faster and cheaper we may be able to identify those men at a higher risk of prostate cancer and monitor them from an early age."
Study author Professor Ros Eeles, from The Institute of Cancer Research, said: "Until now there has been some doubt as to whether mutations in the BRCA1 gene increase the risk of prostate cancer.
"This large study has shown that men with prostate cancer have a one in 200 chance of having an alteration of this gene and men with this alteration have a 3.8 fold increased risk of developing the disease.
"This translates as nearly nine per cent risk of prostate cancer by the age of 65. The important thing about this result is that there are drugs that can target specific defects that occur with the BRCA1 mutation and this kind of result can open up the possibility of targeted medicines based on genetics."
In the study 913 men underwent genetic screening, with results obtained from 886 and four men were found to have alterations in BRCA1. Three out of those four men were diagnosed with prostate cancer before the age of 65.
As well as detecting BRCA1 in men with a history of cancer in their families to identify those at greater risk, genetic screening of men who already have the disease could improve their treatment, the researchers said.
There are already drugs in use that target BRCA1.
The findings come after other research showed that HIFU (high intensity focused ultrasound) can provide the 'perfect' outcome for nine out of ten men with early stage prostate cancer. The majority of men treated were continent, had good sexual function and were free of cancer after 12 months where as traditional surgery or radiotherapy could only offer that in half of cases.
Prostate cancer is the most common cancers affecting men in Britain with 37,000 men diagnosed each year.
It claims 10,000 lives every year.
Despite this, recent research shows that seven out of ten men know absolutely nothing about the disease or its symptoms.
Other faulty genes have been implicated in prostate cancer including a mutation in HOXB13 which increased the risk of the disease 20 fold. It is relatively rare, occuring in less than two per cent of men with prostate cancer.
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