Background/Objectives: Puerto Rican Hispanic/Latino (PR H/L) men experience a heightened incidence and mortality rate of aggressive forms of prostate cancer. The underlying causes of this increased disease burden likely include a complex interplay of socio-economic and biological factors. This pilot study leveraged the first cancer tissue biobank at a Hispanic-Serving Institution (Puerto Rico BioBank) and aimed to provide an initial description of the genomic features of prostate cancer in 35 PR H/L men. Methods: Whole-exome and RNA sequencing were performed on prostate adenocarcinoma tumor samples to investigate the genomic features associated with prostate cancer. Results: Our analysis suggests that mutation profiles and gene expression pattern differences are observed in this population and may be associated with disease aggressiveness and progression. Notably, mutations in TP53 and TMPRSS2-ERG gene fusions, which are common in broader populations, were less prevalent in the PR H/L cohort. Conclusions: While this study contributes to the understanding of ethnicity-specific genetic factors in prostate cancer, underscoring the need for inclusive genomic studies, continued expansion to larger cohorts of patients under-represented in large genomic studies will be needed to more robustly characterize the full range of genomic features of prostate cancer. A broader understanding of the genomic features of prostate cancer in PR H/L men may lead to future opportunities for delivering more personalized prognoses and treatment options, helping to ensure that treatment advances and better outcomes are available to all patients.
Cancers. 2026 Mar 27*** epublish ***
Jamie K Teer, Gilberto Ruiz Deya, Sol V Pérez-Mártir, Jong Y Park, Jose Oliveras, Julie Dutil, Jaime Matta
Department of Biostatistics and Bioinformatics, H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center and Research Institute, Tampa, FL 33612, USA., Urology Residency Program, Department of Surgery, Ponce Health Sciences University, St. Luke's Hospital, Ponce, PR 00717, USA., Division of Clinical and Translational Cancer Research, Comprehensive Cancer Center of the University of Puerto Rico, San Juan, PR 00921, USA., Department of Cancer Epidemiology, H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center and Research Institute, Tampa, FL 33612, USA., Public Health Program, Ponce Research Institute, Ponce Health Sciences University, Ponce, PR 00716, USA., Department of Basic Sciences, Ponce Research Institute, Ponce Health Sciences University, Ponce, PR 00716, USA.