Genetic screening ‘can identify risk of aggressive prostate cancer’

Scientists in the UK have developed a potential new technique for identifying men who are at high risk of aggressive forms of prostate cancer.

A team from the Institute of Cancer Research in London found screening of men who had multiple relatives with prostate cancer was able to pick up 14 mutations in known cancer genes that predicted the development of the disease.

Not only does this demonstrate that some men have a genetic profile that puts them at higher risk of prostate cancer, but also that these particular genetic profiles match to a higher risk of advanced, invasive disease.

This technique could be used as a means of determining which patients are in need of lifelong monitoring, ensuring the condition can be treated as soon as possible.

Ros Eeles, professor of oncogenics at London's Institute of Cancer Research, said further work is needed "to prove that picking up dangerous mutations early can save lives".

She added: "If so, then in the future, genetic testing may be needed as part of the prostate cancer care pathway."

Prostate cancer is the most common cancer in men in the UK, with over 40,000 new cases diagnosed every year. Since it develops slowly, it can often take years for symptoms to emerge.