Major Advance: Gene Linked to Colon Cancer

(Ivanhoe Newswire) -- One genetic variation could make you much more likely to develop colon cancer.

A 10-year study conducted by American and Israeli researchers looked at thousands of Israeli Jews and Arabs. It revealed a significant link between genetic variation in a single region of human chromosome 8 and the risk of colorectal cancer. The specific marker is called the C allele of rs10505477.

The research shows people who carried the marker were 23-percent more likely to have colon cancer than those without it. Researchers say this single variation might cause about 14-percent of colorectal cases in Israel where the disease is the leading cause of cancer deaths.

Researchers compared the genetics and family history of more than 1,800 colorectal cancer patients to those of 1,900 healthy people of the same age, gender, and ethnicity -- Ashkenazi Jew, Sephardic Jew or Arab/non-Jew. The genetic link between the marker and colon cancer was strongest among patients diagnosed with colon cancer when they were under age 50.

The new finding is especially interesting because of other recent discoveries in the genetics of prostate and breast cancer.
"The same genetic region that predisposes to colon cancer has also recently been shown to be an important region predisposing to breast cancer and prostate cancer," lead researcher Stephen Gruber, M.D., Ph.D., from the University of Michigan Medical School, was quoted as saying. "The specific genetic cause for this joint susceptibility to three different cancers has not yet been discovered, but several groups are working to close in on the mechanism that might cause these cancers."
Three other research teams are reporting similar findings. The studies were conducted among other populations around the world, which suggests the genetic marker affects various ethnic groups.

This article was reported by Ivanhoe.com, which offers Medical Alerts by e-mail every day of the week. To subscribe, click on: http://www.ivanhoe.com/newsalert/.

SOURCE: Cancer Biology and Therapy, 2007

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