M. D. Anderson-led team finds first common genomic pieces to lethal puzzle
Jump to full article: EurekAlert, 2008-04-02
Intro: Two common inherited genetic variations are associated with increased risk of lung cancer for smokers and former smokers, a research team led by scientists at The University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center reports April 2 in the online edition of Nature Genetics.
"This is the first study to identify a common genetic variant that influences the risk for developing lung cancer," said lead author Chris Amos, Ph.D., professor in M. D. Anderson's Department of Epidemiology. The variants are present in about half of the Caucasian population studied.
The paper is one of three published by Nature this week from three unique teams that have identified the same genetic locus as associated with increased lung cancer risk. The findings are a major step forward in identifying those at high risk for non-small cell lung cancer and for understanding how smoking and genetic factors interact to cause the disease.
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