Rogue DNA is linked to ovarian cancer

Published on Sunday 2 August 2009 22:46

A GENETIC defect uniquely linked to ovarian cancer has been found for the first time.

Scientists have discovered a patch of DNA containing a change in the genetic code that can increase the lifetime risk of ovarian cancer by 40 per cent.

It is hoped the finding will lead to tests to identify women at highest risk of the disease who can be closely monitored.

It should help speed up diagnosis and lead to earlier treatment of the cancer, increasing the chances of survival.

About 6,800 cases of ovarian cancer are diagnosed in the UK each year – 600 of them in Scotland. The disease causes 4,300 deaths every year.

Ovarian cancer is already known to be linked to the breast cancer genes BRCA1 and BRCA2. But faults in these genes are rare and alone they probably account for less than 5 per cent of all cases of ovarian cancer.

Researchers from Cambridge University and University College London found a new genetic variant located on chromosome nine, one of 23 pairs of chromosomes which are found in cells in the body.

It is thought that about 15 per cent of women in the UK are believed to carry two copies of the variant, increasing their one-in-100 risk of ovarian cancer by 40 per cent. An estimated 20 per cent of the female population carry one copy, raising their risk by 20 per cent.

The researchers, writing in the journal Nature Genetics, scoured the DNA of almost 2,000 women with ovarian cancer and 2,535 without the disease from across the UK.

Dr Simon Gayther, from University College London, said: "There is now a genuine hope that as we find more, we can start to identify the women at greatest risk and this could help doctors to diagnose the disease earlier when treatment has a better chance of being successful."

Dr Lesley Walker, from Cancer Research UK, which funded the research along with The Eve Appeal, said: "This is an important discovery."

PATIENT'S ADVICE: KNOW YOUR BODY

ANNE Stormont is one of the lucky patients whose ovarian cancer was caught early.

Despite some delays in her diagnosis, it was still classed as stage one out of four.

Mrs Stormont, 52, was diagnosed in 1998 after symptoms such as becoming bloated, with a hard stomach like she was pregnant.

The cancer was not identified immediately, and it was only after seeing a locum GP that the mother of two was sent for further checks, which resulted in surgery.

"It was pretty alarming that it took so long, but I was still very lucky that it was still so early," she said.

Mrs Stormont's husband, Iain, had medical insurance and she was able to have the surgery done privately.

"The specialist said, 'There is a possibility it might be cancerous, but it won't be, you're far too young, you don't fit the classic picture'.

"But he also wanted permission that if it turned out to be sinister he could just take anything away – the womb, the other ovary and so on. So I said yes."

Mrs Stormont, from Skye, later found she had a small tumour, but it had led to the production of fluids which left her bloated.

The surgery was enough to rid her of the cancer and she did not need chemotherapy or radiotherapy.

Mrs Stormont yesterday urged women to act on any possible symptoms.

"Statistically, it is more likely to be a disease of old age, but it happens to young women too. My message is to know your body and persist whatever you think is wrong."