Cancer Treatment for People with CHEK2 Mutations

People with an inherited CHEK2 mutation who have been diagnosed with cancer may have different treatment options than people without a mutation. To learn more about standard of care treatment options for specific types of cancer, visit our section on Cancer Treatment by Cancer Type. 

If you have an inherited CHEK2 mutation, have been diagnosed with cancer and any of the situations below apply to you, you may wish to speak to your doctor about your medical options. You may also consider enrolling in a clinical trial studying which treatments work best for people with an inherited CHEK2 mutation. 

• You are making breast cancer surgical decisions
• You have metastatic prostate cancer
• You have advanced ovarian cancer

Regardless of cancer type, people with a CHEK2 mutation may benefit from biomarker testing and may qualify for clinical trials looking for more effective treatments for cancer.

Note that when we use "men" and "women" we are referring to the sex you were assigned at birth.

Surgical decisions for women diagnosed with breast cancer

Experts estimate that women with CHEK2 mutations who have been diagnosed with cancer have about a 6-8 percent risk for developing a second cancer within 10 years. Because of this increased risk, some women who are diagnosed with breast cancer who test positive for an inherited mutation in CHEK2 may choose bilateral mastectomy rather than lumpectomy and radiation. Mutation carriers who undergo mastectomy are less likely to develop a second breast cancer. 

PARP inhibitors

PARP inhibitors are a type of targeted therapy that work by blocking a protein used to repair damaged DNA. They were initially developed to treat cancers in people with an inherited BRCA1 or BRCA2 mutation. Since then, research and additional FDA approvals have expanded use of PARP inhibitors to more situations. People with an CHEK2 mutation who have been diagnosed with cancer may want to ask their doctor about PARP inhibitor therapy. 

Metastatic prostate cancer

The PARP inhibitors, Lynparza (olaparib) and Talzenna (talazoparib) have received FDA approval to treat men with metastatic, castration-resistant prostate cancer who have a mutation in CHEK2 or another gene linked to a certain type of DNA damage repair. 

PARP inhibitors for advanced ovarian, fallopian tube or primary peritoneal cancer

Several PARP inhibitors have been approved to treat ovarian cancers at different stages of the disease. In some situations, a tumor biomarker test known as an HRD test ("hemologous recombination deficiency") can help women with an inherited CHEK2 mutation and advanced ovarian cancer learn if they may benefit from a PARP inhibitor.

Maintenance therapy after first-line treatment

• HRD testing can help women with advanced ovarian cancer learn if they may benefit from the PARP inhibitor Lynparza in combination with bevacizumab as maintenance therapy after first-line platinum chemotherapy.
• Zejula is approved for maintenance therapy in women with advanced ovarian, fallopian tube, or primary peritoneal cancer who had a complete or partial response to first-line platinum-based chemotherapy. Zejula for maintenance therapy does not require an HRD test. 

Maintenance therapy after treatment of recurrent cancer

• Zejula, Rubraca (rucaparib) and Lynparza are all approved for maintenance therapy in women with recurrent epithelial ovarian, fallopian tube, or primary peritoneal cancer who are in a complete or partial response to platinum based chemotherapy. In this setting, none of these drugs requires an HRD test. 

PARP inhibitors for other advanced cancers with no treatment options

If you have a CHEK2 mutation and advanced cancer that no longer responds to standard therapy, you may want to talk with your doctor about whether you might benefit from treatment with a PARP inhibitor.