Colon and rectal cancer genetic risk
Hereditary risk factors for colon and rectal cancer
Approximately 10% of colon and rectal cancers are hereditary, caused by inherited gene mutations that can run in families. Genetic counselors at Piedmont Oncology help determine whether genetic testing for inherited colon cancer risk may benefit your family.
If you or a close family member, had any of the following, you may benefit from genetic cancer risk counseling:
- Colon cancer diagnosed at a young age (50 or younger)
- Multiple separate colon cancers, or colon cancer and another form of cancer, in the same person
- Multiple family members diagnosed with colon, rectal, uterine, ovarian, stomach, pancreatic, breast, thyroid, kidney or other cancers in the family
- Tumor studies showing mismatch repair (MMR) deficiency or microsatellite instability (MSI)
- Multiple colon polyps (i.e. 10+ cumulative polyps) or rare colon polyps (i.e. hamartomatous polyps)
- Colon cancer diagnosed after age 50 – genetic counseling/testing may be considered
Contact a genetic counselor
Ask your doctor about colon cancer genetic risk assessment, or contact our genetics team at 404-425-7300. For more information about our genetics program, counseling and testing, explore our additional resources below:
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