Scientists pinpoint ovarian cancer gene - is treatment on the way?

By: Ryan Jaslow
Topics: News ,; Cancer ,; Research

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(CBS) RAD51D. These six characters may look innocuous, but they represent a newly discovered gene that's linked to ovarian cancer - one of the deadliest cancers for women.

Researchers from the UK-based Institute of Cancer Research compared the DNA of women from more than 900 families with history of breast and ovarian cancer, with nearly 11,000 women with no family history. They found women with a faulty RAD51D gene had a one in 11 chance to develop ovarian cancer, compared with a one in 70 chance for the "control women."

The researchers think this discovery can lead to lab tests hitting the market within years to predict who's at a higher risk for the cancer that often doesn't show symptoms.

"At this level of risk, women may wish to consider having their ovaries removed after having children, to prevent ovarian cancer occurring," Study author Dr. Nazneen Rahman, head of the Institute's division of genetics and epidemiology said in a written statement. The study was published in the August 7 issue of Nature Genetics.

But the hope is women might not have to undergo this operation, known as an oophorectomy, if these genes lead to successful treatments.

"There is also real hope on the horizon that drugs specifically targeted to the gene will be available," Rahman said.

Some of these drugs are already being tested in clinical studies, but are still several years away from the market. Called "PARP inhibitors," these drugs are a newer class of cancer treatments that repair damaged DNA. Rahman told Reuters that early lab tests showed cancer cells with faulty RAD51D were "highly sensitive" to these kinds of drugs. But it's still too early to tell how the drugs will react in humans.

"They haven't been used in patients in that context yet but we would predict they would behave in the same way."

If the researchers are successful, it could pave the way for other gene-targeted cancer treatments.

"It's further evidence that a range of different high risk genes are causing the development of breast and ovarian cancer and we hope there are more waiting to be discovered in different cancers," Dr. Nic Jones, the Institute's chief scientist said in the statement.

Ovarian cancer kills more than 15,000 women a year. Besides family history, women who took estrogen therapy for five years and women over 55 are at greater risk. Symptoms nclude bloating, difficulty eating, indigestion, and pelvic and abdominal pain. Women experiencing these symptoms daily for more than a few weeks should see a doctor.

The National Cancer Institute has more on ovarian cancer.

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