Age at diagnosis among patients with cancer is a predictor of pathogenic germline variant prevalence, yet age thresholds often misclassify genetic risk.
Findings support broad-based germline testing beyond conventional age-based criteria, reflecting the burden of hereditary risk even among late-onset cases.
Across 32 solid tumour types in a pan-cancer cohort, they found enrichment of germline pathogenic variants among patients with subtype-specific early-onset cancer. Using age 50 as a testing cutoff misses most patients with inherited predisposition, supporting universal germline genetic testing for all individuals diagnosed with cancer.
