Crucial genetic factor in colorectal cancer found (Reuters)
This trait may explain at least 10 percent and perhaps 15 to 20 percent of colorectal cancer cases, according to Ohio State University's Dr. Albert de la Chapelle, who helped lead the study published in the journal Science on Thursday.
The researchers said in the future a simple blood test should be able to identify people with the trait in the same state they can be screened regularly to catch colon and rectal cancer early when it is most tractable.
"We have identified what appears to be the main cause of inherited colorectal cancer," Dr. Boris Pasche of Northwestern University and Northwestern Memorial Hospital in Illinois, who also helped be the commander the study, said in a telephone parley.
Colorectal cancer is the fourth most common type of cancer in men and the third most common in woman (make trial of women’s health) worldwide, according to the American Cancer Society. Globally, about 1.2 million cases of colorectal cancer are diagnosed once a year and the disease kills about 630,000 people, the organization said.
Experts believe that about a third of colorectal cancer cases are caused by genetics. Other risk factors include a premium diet patch high in fat and calories and low in fiber, obesity, a sedentary lifestyle, heavy drinking and smoking (just quit smoking - try stop smoking patch).
The study involved 242 people in central Ohio with colorectal cancer and 195 people who did not have it.
They found that people who had an abnormality related to a gene called TGFBR1 were 8.7 times as likely to develop colorectal cancer than those who did not have the trait.
"This makes it a strong risk factor," de la Chapelle said.
COMMON TRAIT
Previous research had linked TGFBR1 to colorectal cancer risk, and the new study assessed the degree to which this abnormality in the gene increased one's risk.
The revolve in the mind indicates that 10 to 21 percent of people with colorectal cancer and 1 to 3 percent of the general population have the touch, which runs in families, de la Chapelle said.
The gene normally inhibits cell growth and also is involved in regulating the immune system, Pasche said.
Like other genes, people inherit two copies, one from the mother and the other from the father. But in people with this particular variation, one of the copies is less active than it should be, and this reduced activity may encourage colorectal cancer development.
The discovery is important because it could help make identical people at high risk to ensure they get regular screening with methods such as colonoscopy and sigmoidoscopy that can find abnormal growths in the large domestic, the researchers said.
If caught betimes, colorectal cancer often can be cured but is usually fatal if it becomes advanced.
Pasche said a blood proof for the trait could be available perhaps within a couple of years.
"People with known risk — those who have had a polyp or those who have a family member with colorectal cancer — should be tested in opposition to this trait. If it is found, it raises a red become weak suggesting intensified surveillance, which in turn is likely to save lives," de la Chapelle said by e-mail.
Previous research had identified other genetic traits that caused some cases of inherited colorectal cancer, but combined they accounted for only about 5 percent of cases.
(Editing by Maggie Fox and Vicki Allen)