Breast cancer, ovarian cancer, rectal cancer... are diseases with a high rate of genetic inheritance, so there are many young people who get the disease before the age of 40 because they carry mutated genes from their parents.
The above information was given by experts at the Genetic Cancer Conference, organized by Bach Mai Hospital on June 14, in Hanoi .
Associate Professor Nguyen Tuan Tung - Deputy Director of Bach Mai Hospital said that hereditary cancer is a type of cancer directly related to genetic mutations, accounting for 5-15% of all cancers. These mutations often affect genes that control cell division and DNA repair, leading to uncontrolled cell growth, thereby forming tumors. Common hereditary cancers include breast cancer, colorectal cancer, ovarian cancer, etc.
Therefore, early detection of genetic mutations can help patients and their families take preventive measures or have regular health check-ups to detect cancer at an early stage, increasing the chance of effective treatment and prolonging healthy life.
According to the Deputy Director of Bach Mai Hospital, today, with the advancement of modern and advanced diagnostic methods such as next-generation sequencing (NGS) analysis, disease diagnosis at the gene level, molecular biology combined with treatment methods such as targeted drugs, immunotherapy... have prolonged life expectancy and improved the quality of life for patients.
Associate Professor Pham Cam Phuong - Director of the Center for Nuclear Medicine and Oncology (Bach Mai Hospital) analyzed that genetic cancer is from the previous generation (father, mother) who had cancer, if there is a mutated gene passed on to the child, the child can get it at an earlier age than those who do not have this gene. For example, breast cancer is common in women over 60 years old, but people with this gene mutation inherited from their mother can get it earlier from 30 years old. There are patients over 60 years old with colon cancer, advising their children to go for a check-up, most of the family members have multiple polyps (many polyps in the colon) - the cause of more than 90% of colon cancers. Or there are young patients (25-30 years old) who go for a colon cancer check-up, asking about family history, the father had colon cancer due to multiple polyps before.
“We have seen cases of 40-year-olds, even 30-year-olds with breast cancer when a family member had the disease. We often see patients in the same family with cancer. For example, when the daughter first came to see a doctor for thyroid cancer, this is a genetic disease, so we advised the patient’s mother and younger brother to come to see a doctor. As a result, both the mother and younger brother also had the disease,” Associate Professor Pham Cam Phuong analyzed.
Previously, lung cancer was often thought to be caused by environmental factors such as smoking, dust, toxic gases, asbestos dust, etc., but today it is seen that if a family history of someone with lung cancer has a higher risk of their relatives in the community. Therefore, for families with someone who has had cancer, it is necessary to test for gene mutations to know if you are at risk of cancer or not so that you can have a strategy for prevention and early detection.
According to the Director of the Center for Nuclear Medicine and Oncology, in the past, not many people paid attention to genetic factors in cancer. But now, many diseases have been identified as having a genetic nature such as breast, ovarian, pancreatic, and prostate cancer related to BRC1 and BEC2 gene mutations. For those with a family history of cancer, family members need to be screened and closely monitored for their health.
“For patients with inherited gene mutations, targeted therapies can be applied to these gene mutations. If the patient has a genetic cancer gene, the doctor will prescribe treatment with targeted drug therapy that targets that gene. In the early stages, within 1 year of treatment, the risk of disease recurrence and metastasis will be reduced. In the late stages, personalized treatment with targeted drugs is also effective,” said Dr. Cam Phuong.
At Bach Mai Hospital, genetic counseling has been implemented in recent years. Through genetic counseling, patients can change their lifestyle, apply early screening strategies to detect cancer at an early stage, increase the chance of effective treatment, and prolong healthy life.
To prevent the risk of cancer, Associate Professor Pham Cam Phuong recommends that people change their lifestyle such as adjusting their diet, eating more green vegetables, limiting fried foods, fast food, soft drinks... to reduce overweight and obesity; increase physical exercise, gradually limit smoking, tobacco, alcohol; get vaccinated against hepatitis B and HPV to reduce the risk of cancer and have a strategy for screening and annual health check-ups to detect cancer early, especially for people aged 40 and over.
The scientific conference “Cancer Genetics” has the participation of leading domestic and international experts, with 14 reports by experts on specialized fields such as cancer genetic counseling, application of new methods for diagnosis, prognosis and selection of the most advanced targeted treatments in cancer today./.
Source: https://www.vietnamplus.vn/nhieu-nguoi-tre-mac-benh-ung-thu-som-vi-mang-gene-dot-bien-tu-bo-me-post1044276.vnp
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