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Genetic Mutations Boost Prostate Cancer Risk

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"This study is helping us understand the role of genetic variants in the risk for prostate cancer," Brooks said.

But, he added, "If you develop a test and tell a man you have five times the risk of developing prostate cancer as other men, what do you do with that?"

Brooks also noted that these genetic variants don't indicate if the disease is aggressive and needs aggressive treatment, or if it's a slow-growing cancer that may not need immediate treatment.

"We still need to find markers of disease aggressiveness. We still need better treatments," he said.

Prostate cancer is the most common type of cancer in American men, other than skin cancer. It is the second leading cause of cancer death in men, behind lung cancer, according to the American Cancer Society.

The society estimates that there will be about 218,890 new cases of prostate cancer in the United States this year, and about 27,050 men will die of the disease.

More information

To learn more about prostate cancer, visit the U.S. National Cancer Institute.

SOURCES: Jianfeng Xu, M.D., Dr.PH., professor, public health and cancer biology, Wake Forest University School of Medicine, Winston-Salem, N.C.; Durado Brooks, M.D., director, prostate and colorectal cancer, American Cancer Society, Atlanta; Jan. 16, 2008,New England Journal of Medicine, online

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