According to a new study published in the journal Clinical Cancer Research, researchers at the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston, Texas, have identified a genetic variant near the KLK3 gene that can predict which patients with prostate cancer and a Gleason score of 7 will have a more aggressive type of the disease.
Prostate cancers associated with a Gleason score of 7 are an intermediate grade of cancer and account for about 30% to 40% of all prostate cancers. This biomarker could allow clinicians to determine whether patients will have a slow-growing or aggressive form of prostate cancer, allowing for better decision regarding treatment options.
For the study, the researchers analyzed the genetic makeup of 72 single nucleotide polymorphisms in 1,827 patients with prostate cancer. They then identified associations between the polymophisms and prostate cancer aggression. They found one polymorphism on the KLK3 gene on chromosome 19 that can predict whether or not a patient with prostate cancer and a Gleason score of 7 will have an aggressive form of the disease.
It can be sometimes difficult to determine the best treatment option for a patient with a Gleason score of 7 because the patient's cancer could be slow-growing or aggressive.
KLK3 gene predicts more aggressive type of the disease.
Researchers at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center have identified a biomarker living next door to the KLK3 gene that can predict which GS7 prostate cancer patients will have a more aggressive form of cancer. The results reported in the journal of Clinical Cancer Research, a publication of the American Association of Cancer Research, indicate the KLK3 gene – a gene on chromosome 19 responsible for encoding the prostate-specific antigen (PSA) – is not only associated with prostate cancer aggression, but a single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) on it is more apparent in cancer patients with GS7.
From News Medical
