David Olmos

About David Olmos

BRCA is a gene that mediates DNA repair. Mutations in BRCA cause genomic instability and greatly enhance risks for developing breast, ovarian, and other cancers.

Dr. David Olmos has found that men carrying inherited mutations in BRCA genes develop more aggressive prostate cancers and earlier resistance to androgen receptor (AR)-targeted therapies.

In this project, the mechanisms by which BRCA mutations and genomic instability contribute to aggressive prostate cancer and resistance to AR-targeted therapies will be studied in patients and experimental models. Biomarkers that identify disabled BRCA functions in tumors will also be discovered.

If successful, molecular mechanisms by which inherited BRCA mutations contribute to aggressive prostate cancer will be characterized.

What this means for patients: The acquisition of genetic aberrations is a hallmark of cancer and contributes to disease progression and drug resistance. Dr. Olmos will discover disease mechanisms and biomarkers of inherited BRCA mutations in prostate cancer which may lead to the development of new therapies in this subset of patients with more aggressive disease.