Scientists Find Five Areas of Genome that Increase Breast Cancer Risk
09 May 2010 - Scientists have found five new regions of the genome that each increase a woman’s risk of developing breast cancer by between six and 16 per cent. The study, published in Nature Genetics, takes the total number of common low risk genetic sites associated with breast cancer to 18.
Professor Nazneen Rahman and colleagues at the ICR and Cambridge University scanned the entire genetic code of more than 4000 women with breast cancer and a family history of the disease, looking for gene alterations that cropped up more regularly in cancer patients than in healthy women.
They then tested the most promising regions in more than 12,000 women with breast cancer, and 12,000 women without breast cancer, in an international collaboration.
One of the sites identified contains a gene called CDK2NA, a gene that regulates the process of cell division and is altered in the DNA of many tumours. This gene has also been linked to increased risk of a type of skin cancer called melanoma.
Interestingly, most of the regions found appear to predispose predominantly towards a type of breast cancer called oestrogen receptor positive. This could open new avenues for research into the use of drugs such as tamoxifen, which can reduce the risk of this form of breast cancer.
While the increased risk conferred by each genetic fault found was small, as more low risk genes are found it may be possible to create tests for a combination of these genes that together significantly increase risk. This could help doctors make decisions about prevention, diagnosis and treatment for women who are more likely to get breast cancer.
