How has our understanding of familial colorectal cancer changed in the last few years?
Before about 1992 or 1993, we recognized the fact that in families where there are multiple family members with colorectal cancer, there was a greater risk for other family members to develop cancer, but we didn’t know specifically what the reason was. Within the past few years, we have been able to identify certain genes that we know are associated with colorectal cancer syndromes. In some families where there is a strong family history of cancer, it is possible to look at the genetic makeup of those individuals, say, for example, an individual who is diagnosed with colorectal cancer at an early age, and determine if there is a change in one of those genes that can be associated with colorectal cancer. If we find that change, we know what to test other family members for. Say, for example, your dad had a change in one of these genes that caused him to get colorectal cancer. We could test you to see if you carried that same gene change. If you didn’t, we know that you are at the genera
