A new DNA “spit test” for prostate cancer can identify men who have an increased risk of developing the disease.
The research published [June 11] in Nature Genetics, funded by an international team including the world’s two biggest cancer research agencies, the National Cancer Institute (NCI) and Cancer Research UK, studied the DNA of 140,000 men to look for genetic variants that predicted for the development of the disease.
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The study found 1-in-100 men were almost 6 times more likely than the general population to develop prostate cancer, giving them a 50% chance of developing the disease. One-in-ten men had a 25% chance of developing the disease.
“We have shown that information from more than 150 genetic variants can now be combined to provide a readout of a man’s inherited risk of prostate cancer,” said Rosalind Eeles, Professor of Oncogenetics at the Institute of Cancer Research in London.
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Eeles explains that they now plan to start a study with primary care physicians in the UK to see whether their genetic test, using only a saliva sample, can predict which men can benefit from interventions to diagnose the disease earlier, or even reduce the risk of the disease occurring.
Read full, original post: New $100 Genetic Test Identifies Men Who Have Vastly Increased Chance Of Developing Prostate Cancer
