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Aug 25, 2023 · Inherited risk and family history aren’t the same thing, even though some people may use them interchangeably. Inherited risks for cancer due to hereditary cancer syndromes are characterized by a known genetic link. Having a family history of cancer may increase the risk for developing cancer even in patients who don’t have hereditary ...
- Overview
- Is cancer genetic or environmental?
- What types of genes are involved in cancer?
- Is cancer hereditary?
- What are family cancer syndromes?
- What types of cancers run in families?
- Can I prevent a hereditary cancer?
- What is genetic testing for cancer?
- Takeaway
Cancer is a genetic disease. Even when due to lifestyle or environment, cancer can develop when genes experience damage. Some people inherit genetic mutations that increase their cancer risk, but most mutations are spontaneous.
Your genes contain the blueprint for almost everything about you. You have between 20,000 and 25,000 genes, typically organized on 23 pairs of chromosomes. These genes each contain a fundamental building block of life — DNA.
Each of the 37 trillion cells in your body contains more than 2 meters (6 feet) of tightly coiled DNA. This code tells each type of cell what to do and when to grow, divide, and die.
Cancer results from damage to this DNA code. In rare cases, people can pass these DNA changes (mutations) to the next generation, causing cancer to run in families.
To understand the origins of cancer, we need first to understand what can cause damage to your DNA. Mutations can result from:
•Environment: Environmental factors, like UV radiation or chemical exposure, can damage your DNA. Agents that cause DNA mutations that lead to cancer are called carcinogens.
•Metabolism: Metabolism is when your body converts food into energy for cells to use. During this process, your cells can damage their DNA, so we accumulate a certain amount of DNA damage over time. Experts estimate that this occurs about 70,000 times each day.
•Spontaneous mutations: Your cells divide multiple trillions of times during your life. This process is usually accurate, but spontaneous errors (mutations) occur once every 100,000 to 100 million times.
Most of the time, your body corrects these errors. Even when your body can’t fix the errors, most of these mutations don’t cause any changes. But if a mutation occurs in a specific type of gene, it may lead to cancer.
A 2017 study showed that as many as two-thirds of cancers occurred due to random gene changes during cell replication.
Oncogenes
Proto-oncogenes help a cell grow typically. A mutation in this gene may cause it to become an oncogene. When activated, oncogenes cause cells to grow and divide out of control. Most mutations that cause the activation of oncogenes are not inherited.
Tumor suppressor genes
Tumor suppressor genes typically slow down cell growth and division. If a mutation causes a tumor suppression gene to turn off, it can no longer control cell growth. This allows cells to grow and divide out of control. Like with oncogenes, mutations that affect tumor suppressor genes are usually not inherited.
DNA repair genes
DNA repair genes help fix the spontaneous mistakes that occur during DNA replication. If they can’t fix them, they cause the cell to die, so it can’t affect you. But mutations that affect DNA repair genes can prevent this process from happening. The BRCA1 and BRCA2 genes are famous examples of DNA repair genes. Inherited mutations in these genes can often lead to breast or ovarian cancer.
If a condition is hereditary, it means one generation can pass it down to the next. That’s not entirely true for cancer, but it’s not entirely false either. This can happen in cancer, but not in most cases.
Most cancers are known as somatic variants. DNA damage in a somatic cell causes these variants. Somatic cells can be any cell that isn’t a sperm or egg cell. People cannot pass these mutations on to each other.
But about 5% to 10% of cancers are germline variants. DNA mutation in a sperm or egg cell causes these variants, and a parent can pass them to their offspring. The mutation then becomes part of the DNA of every cell in the offspring.
Even so, that doesn’t mean that the offspring will have cancer. But it does mean they will have a much higher risk of developing cancer.
Inherited gene mutations tend to run in families. When this happens, it is known as a family cancer syndrome or hereditary cancer syndrome.
Family cancer syndromes are rare. Cancer will affect one-third of people in the United States, which means you’re likely to have multiple family members with cancer. Family cancer syndromes tend to have specific qualities:
•The same cancer shows up in multiple generations, especially if it’s a rare cancer.
•Family members tend to develop cancer at a younger age than usual.
•Some family members have multiple types of cancers.
•Cancer appears in a pair of organs, like both breasts or kidneys.
Common cancers that run in families due to genetics include:
•breast
•colorectal
•stomach
•prostate
•pancreatic
There’s no way to prevent an inherited gene mutation. But keep in mind that inheriting the mutation doesn’t mean you’ll develop cancer. It does mean, though, that your risk is higher.
You can help reduce your risk by limiting environmental factors that may cause cancer to develop. You can also undergo regular screening to catch cancer early if it does develop.
If you suspect that an inherited cancer may run in your family, you may be interested in genetic testing. These tests involve taking a blood, saliva, or tissue sample from your body and sending it to a lab for analysis. The test can let you know whether or not you have a gene mutation that increases your risk of certain cancers.
Keep in mind that the test does not tell you whether you have or will have cancer. It just informs you of your risk.
Cancer is a disease that affects you at the genetic level. By that definition, it’s a genetic disease. But that doesn’t mean it’s necessarily hereditary.
Only about 5% to 10% of cancers are hereditary. And even so, inheriting a genetic mutation linked to cancer doesn’t necessarily mean you will develop cancer. But it does mean your risk is much higher.
Some cancers, like breast and prostate cancer, are more likely to run in families. Other cancers, like brain and lung cancer, are usually due to other causes.
If cancer runs in your family, you may want to explore genetic testing and counseling. These can give you a better idea of your risk and what you can do to maximize your outlook.
Only about 5% to 10% of all cancer cases are hereditary, meaning they are caused by an inherited gene mutation. A cancer might be considered hereditary if: family members in more than one generation have had the same type of cancer; family members developed cancer when they were younger than 50 or younger than usual for that type of cancer
A family history of cancer. Most people who have relatives with cancer will not have inherited a faulty gene. Cancer mostly occurs in older people. It is a common disease. 1 in 2 people in the UK (50%) born after 1960 will be diagnosed with some form of cancer during their lifetime.
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Some inherited gene mutations are linked to a family cancer syndrome (also called an inherited or hereditary cancer syndrome), such as Lynch syndrome. About 5% to 10% of all cancers are inherited. These are clues that a cancer may be related to an inherited gene mutation: Family members were diagnosed with cancer at a younger age.
Aug 8, 2024 · Credit: National Cancer Institute. Yes, cancer is a genetic disease. It is caused by changes in genes that control the way cells grow and multiply. Cells are the building blocks of your body. Each cell has a copy of your genes, which act like an instruction manual. Genes are sections of DNA that carry instructions to make a protein or several ...
People also ask
Can a family history of cancer be hereditary?
What is hereditary cancer?
Is cancer a genetic disease?
Are inherited gene mutations linked to a family cancer syndrome?
Are cancers caused by inherited gene mutations?
Genetic testing is a medical test that looks for changes in chromosomes, genes or proteins that are linked to cancer and other diseases. Genes that are linked to cancer are sometimes called cancer genes. Some genes and genetic changes are also linked to inherited conditions called family cancer syndromes, which increase the risk of cancer.
