Common Skin Cancer Can Signal Increased Risk of Other Cancers

People who develop abnormally frequent cases of a skin cancer known as basal cell carcinoma appear to be at significantly increased risk for the development of other cancers, including blood, breast, colon and prostate cancers, according to a preliminary study by researchers at the Stanford University School of Medicine.

The increased susceptibility is likely caused by mutations in a panel of proteins responsible for repairing DNA damage, the researchers found.

“We discovered that people who develop six or more basal cell carcinomas during a 10-year period are about three times more likely than the general population to develop other, unrelated cancers,” said Kavita Sarin, MD, PhD, assistant professor of dermatology. “We’re hopeful that this finding could be a way to identify people at an increased risk for a life-threatening malignancy before those cancers develop.”

read more: https://www.enn.com/articles/55109-common-skin-cancer-can-signal-increased-risk-of-other-cancers

Posted by admin on Aug 14 2018. Filed under Become a Citizen Journalist, Health, News at Now, News From Roots. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can leave a response or trackback to this entry