Scientists Uncover New Cancer Causing Syndrome

Eklavya Overseas. December 15, 2019

In a recent discovery, Scientists have been able to uncover a new syndrome that causes cancer. The studies show that certain genetic mutations that were formerly thought to be responsible for a rare bone marrow disease may now instead be a major trigger for early-onset cancer. Research has now indicated that mutations in the FANCM gene are not related to Fanconi anemia, which is a bone marrow disease.

Now, as the reports suggest, the FANCM gene mutations might be related to early-onset cancer, and the toxicity of chemotherapy. As commonly known, a major cause of Cancer’s are genetic mutations, they cause a sort of growth dysfunction in the cells which results in the irregular growth that then mutates into tumors that are dangerous for the physical health of an individual. It is necessary to identify the causes of cancer, to prevent them from happening, tackling their progress or creating precautionary steps to avoid the disease causing triggers, and now the scientists have been successful in another attempt. To understand the FANCM, it is important to know that it is a gene linked to Fanconi Anemia, after it was discovered in 2005 that it causes the disease, the studies conducted on it have only developed and begun to explore its implications and effects.

In the study that was led by Massimo Bogliolo, of the Centre for Biomedical Network Research on Rare Diseases (CIBERER) and the Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona in Spain, using genomic sequencing to analyze cells taken from three patients who had mutations in the FANCM gene. However, the study instead resulted that the patients were predisposed to the early-onset cancer, including leukemia and head and neck cancer. These patients also experienced from high levels of toxicity from their chemotherapy. The doctors have revealed that, “loss-of-function mutations in FANCM cause a cancer predisposition syndrome clinically distinct from bona fide FA [Fanconi anemia]."

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