Prostate Cancer

Winning Against Prostate Cancer

For more than two decades, Hoag Family Cancer Institute has been the number one provider for urologic malignancies in Orange County, including the highest volume of prostate cancer patients. With a multidisciplinary approach that includes prevention, early detection, the use of standard and promising new therapies, participation in laboratory and clinical research, and extensive complementary care, the team at Hoag Family Cancer Institute provides prostate cancer patients with every diagnostic and therapeutic advantage.

Of the 1 in 6 American men who will develop prostate cancer in their lifetime, approximately 5-10% are in Hereditary Prostate Cancer (HPC) families.

Having a first degree relative (father, brother or son) with prostate cancer doubles a man’s risk (to a chance of 1 in 3) of developing prostate cancer. Men with two or more first degree relatives with prostate cancer likely have a prostate cancer risk greater than 1 in 3.

With one exception (see below), at this time, genetic testing is not available on a commercial basis for hereditary prostate cancer; however, in families with multiple cases of prostate cancer in close relatives, referral can be made to institutions which are researching hereditary prostate cancer genes.

Prostate cancer is known to occur more frequently, at a younger age and possibly more aggressively in male carriers of the hereditary breast/ovarian cancer (BRCA1 and BRCA2) genes. If prostate cancer occurs in a family where there is also early-onset breast cancer and/or ovarian cancer, then genetic testing of the family may be indicated.