Bressac B, Grand-Jouan S
Service d'immunologie moléculaire, Institut Gustave-Roussy, Villejuif.
Rev Prat. 1992 Apr 1;42(7):803-10.
Epidemiological studies indicate that environmental factors are more important for cancer development than inherited factors. However, clinical observations such as familial cancer clustering, constitute compelling evidence to the existence of inherited susceptibility to cancer. Few cancer-predisposing genes have been identified so far, by hard laboratory work and with the help of molecular biology tools. The predisposing genes that have been cloned can be used for DNA-based diagnosis. Genes inherited in altered form in familial cancers are the same genes that are altered in somatic cells of individuals with sporadic cancers. Identification of cancer genes through the study of rare families in which susceptibility to cancer is inherited, could have important consequences for diagnosis and treatment of common cancers.
流行病学研究表明，环境因素对癌症发生的影响比遗传因素更为重要。然而，诸如家族性癌症聚集等临床观察结果，为癌症遗传易感性的存在提供了有力证据。迄今为止，通过艰苦的实验室工作并借助分子生物学工具，仅鉴定出了少数癌症易感基因。已克隆的易感基因可用于基于DNA的诊断。在家族性癌症中以改变形式遗传的基因，与散发性癌症个体体细胞中发生改变的基因相同。通过研究癌症易感性呈遗传方式的罕见家族来鉴定癌症基因，可能对常见癌症的诊断和治疗产生重要影响。
