We know that a defective BRCA gene can increase a woman’s risk of getting breast, ovarian and other cancers. These same gene changes can also increase a man’s risk of dying from prostate cancer.

A recent study published in The New England Journal of Medicine says that men diagnosed with prostate cancer who test positive for BRCA gene mutations can benefit from a drug developed for BRCA-positive women with ovarian cancer. Based on this study, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration will be reviewing the drug, called olaparib as a possible prostate cancer treatment as well. They are accelerating their review process because of the favorable findings in this study.

The number of tumor cells in the blood dropped significantly in 50 of the men in the study, and several had their tumors size shrink by a third or more. In addition, the drug olaparib improved pain control and quality of life, with some responses lasting more than a year.

Olaparib works by killing BRCA-positive cancer cells by interfering with PARP, which is a DNA repair protein.  Since Olaparib-treated cancer cells are unable to repair damage that happens naturally in their DNA, those cells die.

Harvard Health Blog posted that the findings of this study are promising for those men with advanced prostate cancer that have DNA defects, which is around 30% of men diagnosed with advanced prostate cancer.

Not all men diagnosed with prostate cancer get symptoms, so it’s important to talk to your doctor about screening. The most common symptoms for prostate cancer are listed below as described by the CDC.

• Difficulty starting to urinate.
• Weak or interrupted flow of urine.
• Frequent urination, especially at night.
• Difficulty completely emptying the bladder.
• Pain/burning during urination.
• Blood in the urine or semen.
• Pain in the back, hips, or pelvis that doesn’t go away.
• Painful ejaculation.

If you have any questions or would like a consultation with one of our medical oncologists, please call our scheduling line at 386-774-1223.