As testing for multiple genes at the same time (“multi-gene panel testing”) has become increasingly available with tremendous advances in genetic testing technology, it has become critical to evaluate and refine cancer associations and levels of risk for many of these genes now tested. Through a commercial laboratory database of almost 100,000 results of multi-gene panel testing, associations between mutations in specific genes with breast and ovarian cancers were evaluated. Findings indicated that 8 genes were associated with breast cancer and 11 genes were associated with ovarian cancer. Most had previously been confirmed in association with breast cancer, including ATM, BRCA1, BRCA2, CHEK2, PALB2, PTEN, and TP53. An additional newer gene, BARD1, was also found to be associated with breast cancer in this dataset, but remains a gene for which data continues to emerge to help determine whether a true association with breast cancer exists. Similarly, for ovarian cancer, most genes identified to have an association were consistent with data from prior studies, including BRCA1, BRCA2, BRIP1, MLH1, MSH2, MSH6, STK11, RAD51C, and RAD51D. Additional genes that were shown to have an association with ovarian cancer in this dataset included ATM and NBN, however additional research is needed to determine if an association with ovarian cancer truly exists. Ultimately, there remains a great need to continue to evaluate cancer risks for inherited genes for which we have limited information about level of risk and types of associated cancer.
Kurian et al. JCO Precision Oncology. 2017 :1, 1-12