Genetic Basis and Clonal Evolution of Human Prostate Cancer

Abstract

Publisher Summary This chapter focuses on the genetic basis and clonal evolution of human prostate cancer. Prostate cancer is now receiving attention among cancer researchers, urologists, as well as in the media because of a number of reasons. First and foremost, prostate cancer is now the most common cancer of men in many regions of the developed world. Despite this high incidence, etiology, and risk factors for prostate cancer have remained largely unknown. Studies suggest that although hereditary factors are involved in a fraction of the cases, currently unknown environmental and lifestyle factors are likely to be the most important causative factors. The diagnosis of prostate carcinoma at a very early stage is attractive as it enables curative treatment of the disease. An underlying problem in studies of the epidemiological and clinical aspects of prostate cancer is the fact that the biology and natural history of human prostate cancer are so poorly understood. Studies on the genetic basis of cancer progression should be based on the detailed understanding of the histological and clinical characteristics of tumor progression. Several genetic aberrations that are found in primary prostate carcinomas have been reported to predict the likelihood of metastasis. The failure of endocrine therapy is one of the most important problems in the management of prostate cancer patients. Studies on the genetic basis of prostate cancer have provided new information on the biological behavior and natural history of this increasingly common disease, whose molecular basis was previously very poorly understood. A genetic test to diagnose an inherited predisposition to prostate cancer may become available in the near future. The further understanding of genetic mechanisms is likely to be instrumental in developing targeted therapies for the advanced stages of prostate cancer.