Private MD News

Scientists find genetic link in several types of cancer

Category: Prostate

Men who have a family history of breast cancer may want to consider PSA testing to determine their prostate health. A recent study has found that male family members of women who have the disease are significantly more likely to develop prostate cancer.

After analyzing the medical records of the 2,200 parents and siblings of 500 women under the age of 35 who were being treated for breast cancer, researchers from the University of Melbourne found that men in the group were five times more likely to develop prostate cancer than the general population.

A family history of breast cancer also increased the risk of cancer of the lung, brain and urinary tract. John Hooper, who led the investigation, said that the findings may point to an as yet unknown gene that increases the chances of certain types of cancer.

"We wanted to find out what caused the early onset of breast cancer in these women and found some results we weren't expecting regarding their relatives," he said. "The results of this study could help scientists discover new cancer susceptibility genes that explain the risk of early-onset and other cancers within some families."