Cancer is a common disease, so it’s no surprise that many families have at least a few members who have had cancer.

Sometimes, certain types of cancer seem to run in some families. In some cases, this might be because family members share certain behaviors or exposures that increase cancer risk, such as such as smoking. Cancer risk might also be affected by other factors, like obesity, that tend to run in some families.

But in some cases the cancer is caused by an abnormal gene that is being passed along from generation to generation. Although this is often referred to as inherited cancer, what is inherited is the abnormal gene that can lead to cancer, not the cancer itself. Only about 5% to 10% of all cancers result directly from gene defects (called mutations) inherited from a parent. This information is about those cancers.

Genes, mutations, and cancer

Cancer is a disease in which cells grow out of control. This happens because of changes in some of the genes inside cells. Genes are pieces of DNA that control how cells make the proteins the body needs to function, as well as how cells are kept in balance. Your genes affect things such as hair color, eye color, and height. They can also affect your chance of getting certain diseases, such as cancer.

Nearly every cell in your body has all of the genes you were born with. Although all cells have the same genes, different cells (or types of cells) may use different genes. For example, muscle cells use different genes than skin cells use. The genes that the cell doesn’t need are turned off and not used. The genes that the cell is using are activated or turned on.

An abnormal change in a gene is called a mutation. Mutations in a gene can affect how it functions. For example, a mutation might stop a gene from working. Or it might keep a gene turned on all the time (even when it’s not needed). Either way, these can cause problems inside the cell.

Gene mutations can be either inherited or acquired.

• An inherited gene mutation is present in the egg or sperm cell that formed the child. When the egg is fertilized by the sperm, it creates one cell that then divides many times and eventually becomes a baby. Since all the cells come from this first cell, this kind of mutation is in every cell (including eggs or sperm) and so can be passed on to the next generation.
• An acquired (somatic) mutation does not come from a parent, but is acquired some time later. It starts in one cell, and then is passed on to any new cells that are created from that cell. This kind of mutation is not present in egg or sperm cells, so it is not passed on to the next generation. Acquired mutations are much more common than inherited mutations. Most cancers are caused by acquired mutations.

Many family cancer syndromes are caused by inherited mutations in tumor suppressor genes. These are genes that normally keep cells under control by slowing down how often they divide (to make new cells), repairing DNA mistakes, or telling cells to die at the right time.

Certain things make it more likely that cancers in a family are caused by a family cancer syndrome, such as:

• Many cases of the same type of cancer (especially if it is an uncommon or rare type of cancer)
• Cancers occurring at younger ages than usual (like colon cancer in a 20-year-old)
• More than one type of cancer in a single person (like a woman with both breast and ovarian cancer)
• Cancers occurring in both of a pair of organs (like both eyes, both kidneys, or both breasts)
• More than one childhood cancer in siblings (like sarcoma in both a brother and a sister)
• Cancer occurring in the sex not usually affected (like breast cancer in a man)
• Cancer occurring in many generations (like in a grandfather, father, and son)

Journal of Cancer Research and Immuno-Oncology is an open access rapid peer reviewed journal in the field of cancer research. Journal announces papers for the upcoming issue. Interested can submit their manuscript through online portal.

Submit manuscript at https://www.longdom.org/submissions/cancer-research-immuno-oncology.html or send as an e-mail attachment to the Editorial Office at immunooncology@emedscholar.com

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Maegan Smith

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Journal of Cancer Research and Immuno-Oncology

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