Comprehensive Cancer Control Plan for Michigan, 2009-2015 Goals (2009 - 2015): Cancer Genomics
Goal: Increase availability of cancer-related genetic information to the Michigan public and decrease barriers to risk-appropriate services.
Data Genetics is the science of heredity; the study of genes and the way they determine traits and characteristics passed from generation to generation. In contrast, genomics is the study of the entire genome, including the complex interactions among multiple genes as well as between genes and the environment. Applied to public health, genomics offers the potential to increase understanding of the role of genes, environment and behavior as risk factors for complex, chronic diseases.1
Genomics plays a part in nine of the Ten Leading Causes of Death in the United States. All human beings are 99.9 percent identical in genetic makeup, but differences in the remaining 0.1 percent may hold important clues about the causes of disease.1
According to the Michigan Department of Community Health’s Vital Records Data for 2000, genetic factors contribute to the following leading causes of death among Michigan residents: heart disease, cancer, stroke, chronic lower respiratory diseases, diabetes mellitus, Alzheimer’s disease, and kidney disease.2
More than 950 genetic tests are currently available for clinical testing and most are used for diagnosis of rare single-gene disorders or chromosome abnormalities, with a few being used for newborn screening. However, a growing number of genetic tests may have population-based applications, which includes determining the risk of developing a disease or condition in the future (e.g., predictive testing for breast cancer or cardiovascular disease), and recognizing genetic variations that can influence response to medicines (pharmacogenomics).3
About 5 percent – 10 percent of the common cancers are due to inherited risk:
5 percent – 10 percent of breast cancer is inherited.4
About 5 percent of colorectal cancers are attributed to Hereditary Nonpolyposis Colorectal Cancer.4
5 percent – 10 percent of women with ovarian cancer have BRCA1 or BRCA2 mutations.5
Cancer Genomics Health Disparities Data:
8.3 percent – 10.2 percent of carriers of BRCA1 genetic mutations are Ashkenazi Jewish;
3.5 percent are Hispanic;
1.3 percent – 1.4 percent are African American;
0.5 percent are Asian; and
2.2 percent – 2.9 percent are non-Ashkenazi Caucasian.5
2.6 percent of carriers of BRCA2 genetic mutations are African American, and 2.1% are Caucasian.6
Men who carry mutations in BRCA1 or BRCA 2 are also at an increased risk of developing prostate cancer, facing up to a 20 percent lifetime risk (most BRCA2 carriers).7
1 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Office of Public Health Genomics: Frequently Asked Questions. Available online at www.cdc.gov/genomics/faq.htm. Accessed Nov. 19, 2008.
3 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Office of Public Health Genomics: Genomics in Practice. Available online at www.cdc.gov/genomics/phpractice.htm. Accessed March 16, 2009.
4 American Cancer Society, Cancer Facts and Figures 2008. Available online at www.cancer.org.
5 National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Health: Genetics of Breast and Ovarian Cancer (PDQ) (Last modified July 2002.). Available online at www.cancer.gov/cancerinfo/pdq/genetics/breast-and-ovarian. Accessed March 16, 2009.
6 National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Health: Genetics of Breast and Ovarian Cancer (PDQ). (Last modified July 2002.) Available online at www.cancer.gov/cancerinfo/pdq/genetics/breast-and-ovarian. Accessed March 16, 2009.
7 Agalliu, et al. “Associations of High-Grade Prostate Cancer with BRCA1 and BRCA2 Founder Mutations.” Clinical Cancer Research, 2009. 15:1112-1120.
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