Is Cancer Inherited

2024 Author: Bailey Albertson | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 12:53

Is cancer inherited: what doctors say

Cancer is a terrible disease, which is frightening, including its prevalence. Many people have relatives who have suffered from cancer - but is this disease inherited? Science still has more questions than answers - but that's enough to keep yourself safe.

Can cancer be inherited

If you find fault with words and take this question literally, then the answer will be negative. If one of your parents has or is sick with cancer, this does not mean that you have the disease as well.

However, there is such a thing as hereditary predisposition. It indicates how much you are at risk of developing the disease, but does not necessarily indicate that you have it. If we interpret this concept broadly, then each of the living people has a hereditary predisposition to all diseases - including cancer. The only question is how strong she is. Now doctors agree that the presence of cancer patients in the pedigree somewhat increases the risk of developing a tumor in a person. However, how much is difficult to say. Julia Mandelblat, director of the European Medical Center's Cancer Clinic, ranks the family tree as a risk factor that a person cannot control. In this case, we are talking not only about the older generations (without limitation on knees), but also about horizontal ties - for example, sisters and brothers.

Separately, it is worth noting families in which cases of cancer of the same organ were repeated three or more times - for example, if your sister, grandmother and cousin were diagnosed with ovarian tumors. This is the so-called family savings. In this case, the risk is obviously high, and therefore an urgent need to go to the oncologist for examination.

The good news is that cancer cannot be passed on to the unborn child during pregnancy. The cervix is at the greatest risk of developing a tumor, but even in this case, nothing threatens the baby.

Even if a pregnant woman develops a cancerous tumor, there is no risk to the baby.

What to do if a relative has cancer

As Dr. Mandelblat rightly notes, we can still control some of the risk factors. First, see your oncologist. Tell your doctor that someone in your family is suffering from cancer and get a complete check-up.

In addition, it is worth protecting yourself from other factors that increase the risk of developing a tumor:

• quit smoking;
• do not agree to work in hazardous work;
• if possible, choose the most favorable place of residence from an environmental point of view - avoid houses near busy highways, production.

Seeing an oncologist on time can save your life, especially if you have a predisposition to developing cancer. Do not delay seeing a doctor if someone in your family has already been affected by the tumor.