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Dr. Kim Mulvihill ReportingColon cancer is a common and often deadly form of cancer. But if it's caught early, people with this cancer can survive.
Genetic testing can tell you if you or your family members are at risk for a particular kind of colon cancer, and a new web-based program can help you find out if you should seek out genetic testing.
Katherine Schneider is a genetic counselor. She understands their risk of cancer.
Katherine Schneider, M.P.H, C.G.C., Genetic Counselor: "These two genes right here, and that explains 80% of the families like yours with so much colon cancer."
If those genes have a mutation they can lead to colon cancer. But how do you know if you should get tested?
Sapna Syngal, M.D., M.P.H., Dana-Faber Cancer Institute: "This is a new tool that hopefully will make it much easier for doctors and their patients to figure out if somebody's at genetic risk for colon cancer or not."
Researchers in Boston created a web-based questionnaire and tested it for accuracy. Dr. Sapna Syngal of Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and Brigham and Women's Hospital In Boston, along with colleagues, created a web-based questionnaire, and tested it for accuracy. Their findings appear in JAMA, the Journal of the American Medical Association.
Dr. Sapna Syngal: "You get the patient and their doctor to fill out a series of questions that are pretty straightforward. And then get a number that tells them, well do you have a high likelihood of carrying a mutation or don't you."
The questions are about personal and family health history. Your score tells you if you should consider getting a blood test to confirm your genetic risk.
Dr. Sapna Syngal: "The risks of developing cancer if you carry a mutation in one of these genes are extraordinarily high. The risk of developing colon cancer is 60 to 80% and for a woman, the risk of developing uterine cancer is about 40 to 60%."
Your family members could be at increased risk as well.
Dr. Sapna Syngal: "The genetic test doesn't mean that you're going to get cancer, it just means that you're at risk for cancer. And hopefully with this information we'll be able to prevent cancer from ever happening."
Genetic counselor Katherine Schneider agrees. Katherine Schneider, M.P.H., C.G.C./ Genetic Counselor: "Cancer is curable if you catch it early and even better, with colonoscopies you can often catch things before they even become cancerous, so you've actually prevented a cancer."
Gastroenterologist Dr. Randy Bert is an expert on familial colon cancer. He says a web-based questionnaire is a good addition.
Dr. Kim recommends you talk with your doctor about your risk for colon cancer.
