Dr. Chang on Questions Regarding Molecular Testing in Prostate Cancer

Sam S. Chang, MD, MBA, professor in the Department of Urology and Patricia and Rodes Hart Professor of Urologic Surgery at Vanderbilt University Medical Center, discusses remaining questions regarding molecular testing in prostate cancer.

Surgeons are faced with many challenges despite the fact that a variety of tests are currently available for prostate cancer, says Chang. Simple questions, such as determining which tests to order and how to order them can be difficult to answer. Furthermore, once the results come back, knowing what to do with the test results is another challenge.

This is a big educational barrier that will need to be overcome and part of that is because testing continues to rapidly evolve. It is important to understand that these components of testing need to be considered. These questions will be addressed in the National Comprehensive Cancer Network guidelines as well as in the upcoming American Urological Association guidelines with regard to testing in patients with advanced prostate cancer. Beyond advanced, metastatic, or castration-resistant disease, considering genetic testing in high-risk localized disease also needs to be better understood. Determining specifically how the testing will be best used in this setting is a bigger question that still needs to be addressed, concludes Chang.