Testing for two gene families linked to ovarian cancer has a much higher detection rate than expected, according to scientists from the University of Manchester.
In the largest study of cancer-causing genetic mutations in ovarian cancer to date, scientists tested 277 women with ovarian cancer whose close relatives had been diagnosed with the disease over their lifetime.
The scientists discovered that of those who tested negative for BRCA1 and BRCA2 gene mutations, 22 percent were positive for homologous recombination (HR) and mismatch repair (MMR) genes.
Remarkably, this detection rate is twice as high as the equivalent detection rate in breast cancer.
'This project is the most detailed genetic study of familial ovarian cancer to date... And we show that two gene families... are even more present in these families than we thought.' said lead author Dr Nicola Flaum. 'Wider genetic testing of women with familial ovarian cancer is essential to both optimise their treatment and enable prevention of disease in family members.'
Their results are published in the journal Genetics in Medicine.
