Misbehaving Gene Links Aging and Prostate Cancer

MADISON - Research at the University of Wisconsin is unraveling the mystery of why aging men often develop prostate cancer, the most commonly found cancer in men.

In a first-of-its-kind study, UW School of Medicine and Public Health (SMPH) researchers pinpointed a gene behavior - or, more precisely, misbehavior - that could mark susceptibility to prostate cancer. The findings were published in the August 15 edition of Cancer Research.

Dr. David Jarrard, principal investigator and surgical oncologist at the UW Paul P. Carbone Comprehensive Cancer Center (UWCCC), says the findings may give us a window into preventing prostate cancer in aging men, as well as a mechanism to diagnose the disease in early stages.

"At this point, there has not been much insight into why men develop prostate cancer commonly with aging," notes Jarrard.

"Through this research and follow-up studies, we may be able to identify men at high risk of developing prostate cancer or to find prostate cancer early in its development."

In the first phrase of the research, Jarrard and his team found in mice an erosion of normal gene regulation, or imprinting, that encourages a cancer promoter linked to the development of prostate cancer. Researchers then examined normal-appearing prostate tissues in aging men and found that this same alteration occurred more commonly in men who developed associated cancer.

Jarrard cautions that more research is needed to build on the findings.

"We are setting up a trial to look at this gene change as a marker for men who develop cancer in a broader group of patients both within and outside UW," Jarrard explained.

Another important thrust of ongoing work is determining whether this aberrant gene behavior can be prevented or slowed.

A co-investigator on the study and SMPH researcher, Dr. Richard Weindruch, said of these further plans, "We will investigate diets known to slow aspects of the aging process that may also have a beneficial response in preventing cancer."

Weindruch found in earlier published research that dietary changes can effect aging.

The National Institutes of Health-funded research was a collaboration of the UWCCC and the SMPH geriatrics and urology divisions.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, nearly 190,000 men will be diagnosed with prostate cancer and roughly 29,000 die each year. Nearly one in six men will be diagnosed with the disease, making it the most common cancer detected in American men. 

 

Date published: 8/14/2008