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| ATM Gene Linked to Breast Cancer | |||
Cancer Research UK indicated that the risk of breast cancer is doubled in women who inherit a damaged version of a gene called ATM according to a study in Nature Genetics. A team of researchers at The Institute of Cancer Research compared 433 breast cancer patients with a family history of the disease with 521 healthy women. They discovered 12 ATM gene faults in the breast cancer patient group, compared with two in the healthy group, indicating that the gene is linked to breast cancer more often than would be expected by chance. For over two decades researchers have reported links between breast cancer and the ATM gene, but until now, there was some uncertainty about which faults in ATM could increase the risk of breast cancer and by how much. Study author Nazneen Rahman, professor of cancer genetics at The Institute of Cancer Research, said: “Our study provides strong evidence for the first time that damaged ATM genes definitely have a moderate effect on breast cancer risk in a small number of women. Women who carry these genetic faults could benefit from targeted screening and new treatments in the future, but we need to learn much more about ATM before this information will feed into clinical practice.” Faults in the ATM gene are known to be responsible for a rare, progressive, childhood disease, called ataxia-telangiectasia, which leads to severe neurological disability, as well as respiratory problems and blood cancers. People with this disorder have two faulty copies of the ATM gene, while carriers of the disease only have one. Although they are otherwise healthy carriers with the one faulty copy of the gene have the higher breast cancer risk. |
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| Genetic Link to Breast Cancer | |||
| Although some people are born with a fault in one of their genes it does not necessarily mean that they will ever actually develop cancer, but it however does mean that fewer other things need to go wrong with the rest of their DNA for disease to develop. Doctors say that these people are statistically more likely to get cancer, and that they have a genetic predisposition to the disease. Professor Michael Stratton, from The Institute of Cancer Research and The Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute, who also worked on this study, said: “Inherited risk of breast cancer is probably caused by a combination of genes, so our work is now focused on finding out what other genetic factors are at play that cause around 15 per cent of female ATM carriers to go on to develop breast cancer.” |
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| Lowering Your Risk of Breast Cancer | |||
| There are no guarantees that you can eliminate any chance of developing breast cancer, but you can do many things to reduce your risk.
Regular screening tests for breast cancer, such as an annual mammogram and a breast exam during your annual checkup, allow you and your doctor to ensure that your breasts are as healthy as they can be. Screening also increases the likelihood that your doctor will find breast cancer early, when it's most treatable. Some Risk factor you can control are:
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