“Prostate cancer is a heterogeneous disease and has not yet benefitted from personalized medicine discoveries. Anything that gets us closer to personalized medicine [for prostate cancer] is a plus,” said Michael J. Morris, MD, a medical oncologist at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, New York, when asked about the Oncotype DX prostate cancer assay. “To decide which patients are appropriate for active surveillance on a molecular basis would be great. It is fabulous to have a foothold in personalized medicine,” he added.

Nicholas Vogelzang, MD, Comprehensive Cancer Centers of Las Vegas, said that he has already begun to use the Oncotype DX assay in his practice. “It has great promise. I see a lot of men with Gleason 6 scores who don’t want surgery, yet they have a tremendous amount of anxiety. This test could reassure those patients. The biggest issue from my perspective is insurance coverage,” Dr. Vogelzang commented.

“This test is a great example of precision medicine. You would like to know which group of men with Gleason 6 scores should not be managed by active surveillance,” Dr. Vogelzang stated. ■

Disclosure: Drs. Morris and Vogelzang reported no potential conflicts of interest.