Recurrent gene fusions in prostate cancer

C Kumar-Sinha, SA Tomlins, AM Chinnaiyan - Nature Reviews Cancer, 2008 - nature.com
Nature Reviews Cancer, 2008nature.com
The discovery of recurrent gene fusions in a majority of prostate cancers has important
clinical and biological implications in the study of common epithelial tumours. Gene fusion
and chromosomal rearrangements were previously thought to be primarily the oncogenic
mechanism of haematological malignancies and sarcomas. The prostate cancer gene
fusions that have been identified thus far are characterized by 5′ genomic regulatory
elements, most commonly controlled by androgen, fused to members of the Ets family of …
Abstract
The discovery of recurrent gene fusions in a majority of prostate cancers has important clinical and biological implications in the study of common epithelial tumours. Gene fusion and chromosomal rearrangements were previously thought to be primarily the oncogenic mechanism of haematological malignancies and sarcomas. The prostate cancer gene fusions that have been identified thus far are characterized by 5′ genomic regulatory elements, most commonly controlled by androgen, fused to members of the Ets family of transcription factors, leading to the overexpression of oncogenic transcription factors. Ets gene fusions probably define a distinct class of prostate cancer, and this might have a bearing on diagnosis, prognosis and rational therapeutic targeting.
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