Hereditary bladder cancer.
First degree relatives of patients with bladder cancer have a two-fold increased risk of bladder cancer but high-risk bladder cancer families are extremely rare. There is no clear Mendelian inheritance pattern that can explain the increased familial risk. This makes classical linkage studies for the mapping of susceptibility genes impossible. The disease is probably caused by a combination of exposure to exogenous carcinogens and a large number of susceptibility genes with modest effects. Genome-wide association studies are better suited to identify these genes. Three such studies are currently underway and are expected to report their results in 2008.
Kiemeney
Lambertus A L M
LA
Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Radboud University Nijmegen Medical Centre, Nijmegen, The Netherlands. b.kiemeney@epib.umcn.nl
D052138:Genes, Neoplasm / Q000235:genetics*; D020022:Genetic Predisposition to Disease; D005820:Genetic Testing / Q000379:methods; D005838:Genotype; D006801:Humans; D001749:Urinary Bladder Neoplasms / Q000235:genetics*