WHAT IS HEREDITARY COLORECTAL CANCER?
We say that a family has hereditary colorectal cancer when we know about the exact genetic change that causes the cancer. Several genetic changes that cause hereditary colorectal cancer have been found. There may be other gene mutations (changes) that we have not yet found. We know of two other inherited colorectal cancer syndromes. These two conditions occur in both Jewish and non-Jewish families: • Hereditary Non-Polyposis Colorectal Cancer (HNPCC): Patients with HNPCC develop colon cancer at an early age, usually under the age of 50, and may have a strong family history of colorectal cancer. • Familial Adenomatous Polyposis (FAP): Patients with FAP develop many colon polyps at a young age and often have a strong family history of colorectal cancer. In 1997, a Johns Hopkins research team found an inherited mutation called APC I1307K. Researchers believe that 6 percent of the Ashkenazi Jewish population have this gene mutation. People who inherit this gene mutation have an increased r
