"A lot of the risk in terms of developing prostate cancer is genetic and not something we have full control over." Dr. Schlegel (Department Chairman) of Cornell Urology discusses the role genetics play in Prostate Cancer.

A lot of the risk in terms of developing prostate cancer is genetic and not something that we have full control over.



Prostate cancer is on of the most genetically-based diseases. So if you compare, for example, prostate cancer to say breast cancer or colon cancer, cancers that we think of as running in families, actually prostate cancer is more likely to run in the family. So an identical twin is more likely to develop prostate cancer than a fraternal twin, and the risk of an identical twin developing prostate cancer would be much higher than if the other twin had developed breast cancer. We also, unfortunately, don't have markers, blood tests, that we can use to measure who is at risk. But I think as time goes on, we'll have a clearer picture of the marker, or multiple markers, that may go into creating prostate cancer risk for an individual or a family member.