Common gene link seen between prostate and colorectal cancer
Sun Jul 8, 5:49 PM ET

A combination of genetic variants that boosts the risk of prostate cancer also increases the risk of colorectal cancer, according to papers published on Sunday in the journal Nature Genetics.
The mutations lie on Chromosome 8, say three groups of scientists who compared the DNA of thousands of healthy individuals with that of other people who had one or both kinds of the cancer.
Colorectal cancer is the fourth deadliest form of cancer, according to the World Health Organisation (WHO).
Cancer of the bowel and rectum inflicts 655,000 deaths per year, after cancer of lung (1.3 million deaths), the stomach (one million), and liver (662,000), the WHO website says.
Colorectal cancer has been previously linked to a small number of relatively rare genetic mutations, as well as to lifestyle habits, such as smoking, a diet high in fat and low in fruit and vegetables.
This is the first evidence for a common genetic risk factor with another cancer type.
Genetic "signatures" of susceptibility to cancer can be used to help doctors advise people at risk, counselling them for instance to get frequent screenings and avoid risky activities. They also open up potential paths for drugs to block or reverse the workings of the flawed gene.