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June 4, 2008 It is widely known that having a family history of colorectal cancer increases your chance of developing the disease. But now researchers have found that a family history of colorectal cancer may also significantly decrease your chance of dying from the disease. Medical oncologist Jennifer Chan with the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute led a group of researchers who analyzed more than a thousand patients with stage III colon cancer. 18% of them had a parent or sibling diagnosed with colorectal cancer. The patients were followed from 1999 through 2007. In addition to having stage III colon cancer they had undergone a complete surgical resection of the tumor and also received chemotherapy. The researchers found that a family history of the disease significantly decreased their chance of recurrence and death by approximately 25%. In addition, when patients had 2 or more affected relatives, their chance of recurrence or death decreased even further to about 50%. The study only looked at first-degree relatives meaning parents and siblings. Additional studies are needed to fully understand how family history can influence outcomes. The researchers say it appears differences in the molecular make-up of the cancer influence patient survival. “We suspect that the patients may have a genetic trait…that affects the biological behavior of the disease and the chance for recurrence.
Other news in this month - Sleep Apnea Linked to Memory Loss June 27, 2008
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