Abstract B123: The genetic tone of prostate cancer risk linked to ancestry: Do we know all about genetic admixture, cancer, and ancestry?
Authors: Flórez Víctor , Vélez Jorge , Vidal Oscar M. 
Published: August 2020

Background: Epidemiologic studies have shown a correlation between a population genetic makeup and prostate cancer (PCa) risk. Specifically, African ancestry has been linked to PCa genetic risk. Furthermore, genome-wide association studies in European and Caucasian racial/ethnic populations have shown around 80 different genetic risk variants. Therefore, it is paramount to estimate the generalizability of these variants in other populations. As such, the Colombian population would be an ideal scenario to assess the generalizability of these genomic findings. Colombian is a highly admixed population shaped from Native Americans mixed with Europeans and African populations in different times since the European colonization. We hypothesized that perhaps we could design PCa risk models that could predict the genetic risk vs. the genetic admixture variation in our population; thus, the genetic risk will be dependent of the degree of genetic admixture found in a specific subpopulation.

Study Design: We propose to analyze epidemiologic data from the Colombian National Information Registry, using cancer incidence and mortality. We will investigate the cancer registries of four different Colombian cities: Manizales (Andes center region), Bucaramanga (west region), Pasto (Andes south region), and Barranquilla (Caribbean north region). Each of these cities has a characteristic genetic heterogeneity due to their geographical position, as well as the population composition. Andean regions, such as Pasto, have historically more Native American ethnicities, while the Caribbean region is more greatly influenced by African populations. We propose two biologic questions: 1. What is the molecular epidemiology of prostate cancer in Andean and Caribbean populations of Colombia and their association with prostate cancer risk? 2. What is the molecular epidemiology of prostate cancer in Andean and Caribbean populations of Colombia and their association with prostate cancer survival?

Relevance: The capacity to identify PCa risk populations in developing countries will allow us to design public health strategies that focus on these populations, in order to implement policies for PCa prevention and early detection. It is paramount to understand the generalizability of genetic risk variants in other populations, such as the Colombian population. We propose to investigate the relationship between PCa genetic risk and the degree of genetic admixture found in different Colombian specific populations (Andes, Central and Caribbean). Potential findings could help us to categorize subpopulations within a main population. Currently, we label a population as “Latino” and are consequently labeling the entire population as one category. It will be important to acknowledge the heterogeneity of admixed populations in future studies.

Citation Format: Víctor Flórez, Jorge Vélez, Oscar M. Vidal. The genetic tone of prostate cancer risk linked to ancestry: Do we know all about genetic admixture, cancer, and ancestry? [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the Eleventh AACR Conference on the Science of Cancer Health Disparities in Racial/Ethnic Minorities and the Medically Underserved; 2018 Nov 2-5; New Orleans, LA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev 2020;29(6 Suppl):Abstract nr B123.