Lynch Syndrome Awareness
What is Lynch Syndrome?
Lynch Syndrome is an inherited cancer predisposition syndrome - also referred to as hereditary nonpolyposis colorectal cancer syndrome (HNPCC) - caused by a mutation in the MLH1, MSH2, MSH6 or PMS2 gene. These are the genes responsible for repairing mistakes in DNA, so when one of the genes is compromised or mutated, it puts a person at greater risk for developing a variety of cancers including colorectal and endometrial cancers.
Because Lynch Syndrome is hereditary, there is a 50% chance that if your parent has it, you'll get it, and if you get it, there's a 50% chance you'll pass it to your children (if you have any). It doesn't skip generations, and men and women are equally as likely to develop it.
In less doctory words, here's the way I usually explain it to people: When cells divide and "duplicate" or "reproduce" (through mitosis), there are bound to be mutations and mistakes. Healthy cells can correct those mutations, but with Lynch Syndrome, the cells aren't able to do that. In turn, those mutated cells are likely to become cancerous.
Some Statistics on Lynch Syndrome
An estimated 95% of cases are undiagnosed.
3-5% of colorectal cancers are due to Lynch Syndrome.
People with Lynch syndrome have a 15-80% lifetime risk of developing colorectal cancer (compared to a 5% risk for people with average risk).
Women with Lynch syndrome carry an elevated risk of developing endometrial cancer. Depending on the mutated gene, there is a 14-71% lifetime risk.
Women with Lynch syndrome carry a 4-24% chance of developing ovarian cancer.
Men and women with Lynch syndrome carry a 1-13% lifetime risk of developing stomach cancer.
Women with Lynch carry a slightly increased risk of breast cancer compared to others in the population (as high as 18% for Lynch patients compared with 12% for average-risk women).
Men with Lynch carry an elevated risk for prostate cancer (as high as 30% for Lynch patients compared to 16% for average-risk men).
Lynch syndrome causes about 4,000 colorectal cancers and 1,800 uterine (endometrial) cancers per year.
It doesn't stop there, either. There are a handful of other cancers people affected by Lynch Syndrome are prone to developing, including but not limited to:
Upper urinary tract cancer (up to 28%)Skin cancer (up to 9%)Pancreatic cancer (up to 6%)Small intestine cancer (up to 6%)Bladder (up to 6%)Hepatobiliary tract cancer (up to 4%)Brain/central nervous system cancer (up to 3%)Kidney cancer (up to 3%)
DON'T BE AFRAID!
People with Lynch syndrome have significantly better survival, with 94% of these patients still alive five years after diagnosis, compared to a 5-year survival rate of 75% for those with sporadic colon cancer.
Symptoms of Lynch Syndrome
Include but are not limited to:
Colon cancer that occurs at a younger age, especially before age 50.A family history of colon cancer that occurs at a young age.A family history of cancer that affects the uterus (endometrial cancer).A family history of other related cancers, including ovarian cancer, kidney cancer, stomach cancer, small intestine cancer, liver cancer, sweat gland cancer (sebaceous carcinoma) and other cancers.
If you are worried that you or a loved one may have undiagnosed Lynch Syndrome, please speak with your doctor & consider seeing a genetic counselor.
sources: VeryWell Health, Mayo Clinic, CDC, Cancer.net, MD Anderson, Fight Colorectal Cancer.