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Joyce F. Liu, MD, MPH
Joyce F. Liu, MD, MPH
Posted: Tuesday, January 21, 2025
Patients from the United Arab Emirates with a family history of breast or ovarian cancer appear to have a higher rate of pathogenic or likely pathogenic germline variants than similar patients from Europe or North America, according to a study conducted by Stephen R. Grobmyer, MD, of Cleveland Clinic Abu Dhabi. The research was published in JCO Global Oncology.
“To our knowledge, this is the first study to assess the frequency and spectrum of germline mutations in cancer predisposition genes done exclusively in Emirati patients,” the investigators commented.
The retrospective study included 192 Emirati citizens with a personal or family history of breast or ovarian cancer. Group A included 135 patients who have had breast or ovarian cancer. Group B included 37 unaffected people with a family history of breast or ovarian cancer. Group C included 20 unaffected people with a relative who has a risky genetic variant. Those who opted for genetic testing were 81.5% of group A, 32.4% of group B, and 95% of group C.
Patients underwent gene panel testing for either 47, 84, or 14 common cancer genes, or testing for the gene variant their family member had, if applicable. The rate of pathogenic or likely pathogenic germline variants was 17% for group A, 17% for group B, and 58% for group C. These variants were most often located on the BRCA1 gene, followed by the BRCA2 gene.
In the 135 patients with cancer, the median patient age of diagnosis was 46 years, about 10 years younger than the median age of breast cancer diagnosis reported in European and North American populations. However, this was consistent with a previous study in the United Arab Emirates, which found a median patient age of diagnosis of 48 years, noted the authors.
Group B, comprising patients with a family history of breast or ovarian cancer, had a particularly low rate of uptake for genetic testing: 32%. The authors cited this as the impetus to identify and remove sociocultural barriers to genetic testing in the United Arab Emirates.
Disclosure: For full disclosures of the study authors, visit ascopubs.org.
