Race, biochemical disease recurrence, and prostate–specific antigen doubling time in the SEARCH database

In their study in the current issue of Cancer , Hamilton et al. attempt to resolve conflicting data regarding prostate cancer and racial outcomes. The most interesting findings include a significantly younger population of black men with higher prostate–specific antigen levels, similar tumor grade, and less extracapsular extension, yet with a higher rate of biochemical disease recurrence compared with white men. Recent genetic studies have reported that variants on chromosome 8q24 and CYP3A4 on chromosome 7 are associated with aggressive prostate cancer in young black men.