Younger age-at-diagnosis for familial malignant testicular germ cell tumor.
One of the clinical hallmarks of hereditary cancer susceptibility disorders is a younger-than-usual age at diagnosis. Familial aggregation of testicular germ cell tumor (TGCT) has been reported, but data on whether familial TGCT cases are diagnosed at an earlier age are inconclusive. Here we compared the age at diagnosis of familial TGCT cases with that of population cases in several countries. Familial TGCT is defined as affected individuals from families with >or=2 cases of TGCT. Age at diagnosis of familial cases from the United States, Canada, United Kingdom, Australia and New Zealand, Norway, and Hungary was compared to cases identified in population-based cancer registries from the respective country, using the generalized estimation equation method. Age at diagnosis was statistically significantly younger for familial TGCT cases from North America (P = 0.024), the United Kingdom (P < 0.0001), and Australia and New Zealand (P = 0.0033) compared with population cases. When stratified by histology, the difference in age at diagnosis distribution between familial and population cases was observed for seminoma cases from North America (P = 0.002) and the United Kingdom (P < 0.0001) and non-seminoma cases from the United Kingdom (P = 0.029) and Australia and New Zealand (P = 0.0023). In summary, we found that the age at diagnosis for familial TGCT cases is, on the average, 2-3 years younger than that for the population cases in North America, United Kingdom, and Australia and New Zealand. The younger age at diagnosis might be suggestive of a genetic basis for familial TGCT.
Mai
Phuong L
PL
Clinical Genetics Branch, Division of Cancer Epidemiology and Genetics, National Cancer Institute, Rockville, MA 20852, USA. maip@mail.nih.gov
Chen
Bingshu E
BE
Tucker
Kathy
K
Friedlander
Michael
M
Phillips
Kelly-Anne
KA
Hogg
David
D
Jewett
Michael A S
MA
Bodrogi
Istvan
I
Geczi
Lajos
L
Olah
Edith
E
Heimdal
Ketil
K
Fosså
Sophie D
SD
Nathanson
Katherine L
KL
Korde
Larissa
L
Easton
Douglas F
DF
Dudakia
Darshna
D
Huddart
Robert
R
Stratton
Michael R
MR
Bishop
D Timothy
DT
Rapley
Elizabeth A
EA
Greene
Mark H
MH
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D017668:Age of Onset; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D020022:Genetic Predisposition to Disease; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009373:Neoplasms, Germ Cell and Embryonal / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000235:genetics*; D012042:Registries; D013736:Testicular Neoplasms / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000235:genetics*; D055815:Young Adult