New Prostate Cancer Subtype Identified, Responsive to Immunotherapy

Researchers in the U.S. and U.K. have identified a new subtype of prostate cancer that is characterized by loss of both copies of the CDK12 gene, and which an early clinical study showed can respond to immune checkpoint inhibitor drugs that commonly aren’t effective against prostate cancer. The new tumor subtype is characterized by mutations in both copies of the CDK12 gene and occurs in about 7% of patients with metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer (mCRPC), although only about