A recent study has found new genetic links to the most lethal form of uterine cancer.
Researchers from the National Institutes of Health pinpointed three genes that frequently altered in their study in a type of uterine cancer called serous endometrial cancer. The finding suggests that those genes drive the development of the tumors.
Scientists already knew that uterine cancer had genetic links. This study pinpointed additional potential triggers. Researchers involved in the study said in a news release that it’s too early to discuss how the findings affect prospects for treatment.
Uterine cancer, also called endometrial cancer, is the most commonly diagnosed gynecological cancer in the U.S., according to a NIH news release. About 47,000 American women are diagnosed annually, leading to roughly 8,000 deaths.
Roughly 2 to 10 percent of uterine cancers are the serous type. It doesn’t respond well to therapies and the five-year survival rate is roughly 45 percent. It quickly advances beyond the uterus.
An article on the study recently appeared in the advance online issue of Nature Genetics.
— Heidi Hagemeier, The Bulletin
