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A meta-analysis of 87,040 individuals identifies 23 new susceptibility loci for prostate cancer.
Al Olama, AA, Kote-Jarai, Z, Berndt, SI, Conti, DV, Schumacher, F, Han, Y, Benlloch, S, Hazelett, DJ, Wang, Z, Saunders, E, et al
Nature genetics. 2014;(10):1103-9
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Abstract
Genome-wide association studies (GWAS) have identified 76 variants associated with prostate cancer risk predominantly in populations of European ancestry. To identify additional susceptibility loci for this common cancer, we conducted a meta-analysis of > 10 million SNPs in 43,303 prostate cancer cases and 43,737 controls from studies in populations of European, African, Japanese and Latino ancestry. Twenty-three new susceptibility loci were identified at association P < 5 × 10(-8); 15 variants were identified among men of European ancestry, 7 were identified in multi-ancestry analyses and 1 was associated with early-onset prostate cancer. These 23 variants, in combination with known prostate cancer risk variants, explain 33% of the familial risk for this disease in European-ancestry populations. These findings provide new regions for investigation into the pathogenesis of prostate cancer and demonstrate the usefulness of combining ancestrally diverse populations to discover risk loci for disease.
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Androgen receptor CAG repeat polymorphism and risk of TMPRSS2:ERG-positive prostate cancer.
Yoo, S, Pettersson, A, Jordahl, KM, Lis, RT, Lindstrom, S, Meisner, A, Nuttall, EJ, Stack, EC, Stampfer, MJ, Kraft, P, et al
Cancer epidemiology, biomarkers & prevention : a publication of the American Association for Cancer Research, cosponsored by the American Society of Preventive Oncology. 2014;(10):2027-31
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Abstract
BACKGROUND The androgen receptor (AR) is an essential gene in prostate cancer pathogenesis and progression. Genetic variation in AR exists, including a polymorphic CAG repeat sequence that is inversely associated with transcriptional activity. Experimental data suggest that heightened AR activity facilitates formation of TMPRSS2:ERG, a gene fusion present in approximately 50% of tumors of patients with prostate cancer. METHODS We undertook a nested case-control study to investigate the hypothesis that shorter CAG repeat length would be associated with prostate cancer risk defined by TMPRSS2:ERG status. The study included 291 men with prostate cancer (147 ERG-positive) and 1,221 cancer-free controls. ORs and 95% confidence intervals (CI) were calculated using logistic regression. RESULTS Median CAG repeat length (interquartile range) among controls was 22 (20-24). Men with shorter CAG repeats had an increased risk of ERG-positive (OR, 1.07 per 1 repeat decrease; 95% CI, 1.00-1.14), but not ERG-negative prostate cancer (OR, 0.99 per 1 repeat decrease; 95% CI, 0.93-1.05). CONCLUSIONS These data suggest that shorter CAG repeats are specifically associated with development of TMPRSS2:ERG-positive prostate cancer. IMPACT Our results provide supportive evidence that androgen signaling underlies the development of prostate tumors that harbor TMPRSS2:ERG. Moreover, these results suggest that TMPRSS2:ERG may represent a unique molecular subtype of prostate cancer with an etiology distinct from TMPRSS2:ERG-negative disease.