8 types of cancer may be “inherited” by parents to the next generation

8 types of cancer may be “inherited” to the next generation.  We all know that genes will be passed on from generation to generation, and inheritance is also one of the high risk factors for cancer. Will cancer from parents be passed on to the next generation? Can people with a family history of cancer escape the “judgment of fate”?

Cancer is essentially a genetic disease, and many cancers have a genetic tendency.

In May 2013, American actress Angelina Jolie mentioned in the article “My Medical Choices” published in the “New York Times”: “I carry a “wrong” gene-BRCA1, which makes me have 87% chance of getting breast cancer, 50% chance of getting ovarian cancer. After the breast removal, my risk of breast cancer dropped from 87% to 5%. My children no longer have to worry about losing their own due to breast cancer. Mommy.”

Julie said her mother died at the age of 56 after fighting breast cancer for more than ten years. Through genetic testing, Julie found that she had inherited the same mutant gene from her mother, and decided to choose preventive mastectomy, which was a sensation at the time. At the same time, her story also made more people realize that cancer can be inherited, and more and more people are concerned about whether the cancer of their loved ones means that they are also at great risk.

Cancer is essentially a genetic disease-genes that originally play an important physiological role in normal cells are abnormally activated under certain conditions, such as viral infection, chemical carcinogens, or radiation effects, and turn into oncogenes, which are induced The cells become cancerous.

As the basic unit of heredity, genes may indeed lead to the inheritance of certain cancers. However, the genetic process itself is very complicated, and the genetic probability and genetic basis of different cancers are very different.

In layman’s terms, cancer inheritance is different from ordinary genetic diseases, and it is different from “whatever disease the father gets, the son gets whatever disease.”

The inheritance of cancer may cause multiple people to suffer from different cancers. A pathogenic mutation in one gene may cause multiple cancers. For example, a mutation in the brca1 gene may cause breast cancer or ovarian cancer.

At present, humans do not fully understand the mechanism of cancer. The etiology of many cancers is not clear. There are more than 30 types of cancers that have been shown to have obvious genetic predispositions.

These 8 types of cancer are most likely to be passed on to the next generation.

Breast cancer

In the 1990s, breast cancer susceptibility genes BRCA1 and BRCA2 were discovered, but only 5% to 10% of breast cancers are related to genetic inheritance.

Under normal circumstances, a mother or sister in a family has breast cancer, and the risk of her daughter or sister getting breast cancer is about three times higher than that of an average woman.

Ovarian cancer

About 20%~25% of epithelial ovarian cancer is related to genetic factors. Family history of breast cancer, ovarian cancer, colorectal cancer, etc., may all lead to an increased risk of ovarian cancer in female members of the family.

Colorectal cancer

Familial colon polyps are easy to develop into colorectal cancer. If parents have colorectal cancer caused by the above diseases, the probability of their children suffering from the same cancer is as high as 50%.

Stomach cancer

In all patients with gastric cancer, 10% have a clear tendency to familial aggregation.

A large amount of data shows that family tumor history, especially the history of gastric cancer in immediate family members, is a risk factor for gastric cancer. Relatives of patients with gastric cancer are two to three times more likely to develop gastric cancer than others.

Lung cancer

A survey in Japan showed that 35.8% of patients with lung squamous cell carcinoma had a family history; among female patients with alveolar cell carcinoma, 58.3% had a family history.

Endometrial cancer

According to statistics, about 5% of all endometrial cancer patients are caused by genetic factors, and the age of onset of these patients is 10-20 years younger than the average age of patients with sporadic endometrial cancer.

Pancreatic cancer

5% to 10% of family members of pancreatic cancer patients also have a history of the disease. If more than one immediate family member (parents, siblings, children, etc.) suffers from the disease, the risk of the disease will increase significantly, and the disease often occurs before the age of 50.

Prostate cancer

If an immediate family member has prostate cancer, the risk of prostate cancer will double. The relative risk of prostate cancer in two or more relatives will increase by 5 to 11 times.

Clinically, hereditary retinoblastoma, hereditary melanoma, hereditary multiple endocrine adenoma, neurosarcoma, etc. are also common. In addition, the concentrated occurrence of leukemia, brain tumor, bone tumor, etc. in the family also clearly indicates that hereditary cancer has occurred.

All in all, inherited genetic mutations can increase the risk of a variety of cancers, so it is important to understand your family history of cancer. If you are worried that you will have the corresponding genetic mutation, consult your doctor in time. A genetic test may help you determine your cancer risk.

However, if you find that you have a genetic mutation, don’t worry too much, because cancer is caused by multiple factors. Carrying a genetic mutation does not necessarily lead to cancer, but the risk is higher, so you should be more vigilant. Maintaining healthy living habits and regular screening will help to detect abnormal symptoms in the body in time, so as to treat them in time and reduce the risk of cancer.

(source:internet, reference only)

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