Colon Cancer Susceptibility Gene Located

A recent study found that a specific stretch of human chromosome nine contains a gene for heightened susceptibility to colon cancer.

Investigators at Case Western Reserve University (Cleveland, OH, USA) performed whole genome scans on blood samples from 53 families in which at least one member of the family had colon cancer or a pre-cancerous colon polyp. They found a genetic linkage to chromosomal region 9q22.2-31.2 in a pattern consistent with autosomal dominant disease alleles. While nearly 30% of adults over age 50 have non-symptomatic polyps in the colon, which are precursors to cancer, brothers and sisters of individuals with colon polyps or cancer have triple the average risk for developing colon cancer themselves. These findings were published October 17, 2003, in the online edition of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

Although more than 200 genes are present on this particular region of chromosome nine, senior author Dr. Sanford Markowitz, professor of genetics at Case Western, said, "This moves us much closer to developing a blood test that will identify people who are susceptible to colon cancer before the cancer ever develops.”




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