National Cancer Institute Prostate Cancer Genetics Workshop

Compelling evidence supports a genetic component to prostate cancer (PC) susceptibility and aggressiveness. Recent genome-wide association studies (GWAS) have identified >30 single nucleotide polymorphisms associated with PC susceptibility. It remains unclear, however, whether such genetic variants are associated with disease aggressiveness—one of the most important questions in PC research today. To help clarify this and substantially expand research in the genetic determinants of PC aggressiveness, the first National Cancer Institute Prostate Cancer Genetics Workshop assembled researchers to develop plans for a large new research consortium and patient cohort. The workshop reviewed the prior work in this area and addressed the practical issues in planning future studies. With new DNA sequencing technology, the potential application of sequencing information to patient care is emerging. The workshop, therefore, included state-of-the-art presentations by experts on new genotyping technologies, including sequencing and associated bioinformatics issues, which are just beginning to be applied to cancer genetics.