Cancer : a genetic disease

1. Cancer: a geneticdisease Josejavier alejos 9th “A”

2. The environment, the main cause of cancer • most of the genetic mutations that produce cancer are not inherited. Instead, they are caused by our environments. The good news is that this means most cancers are preventable. • The roles of smoking and radiation are the most common causes of cancer. The radiation is mostly cause by the reduction of the ozone in earth´s atmosphere ,that allows more UV (ultra violet) radiation to reach earth´s surface.

3. Types of cancer can be hereditable • It is now believed that cancer is caused by genetic mutation most often, by a series of mutations, some of may be inherited. To test this hypothesis, researchers have put a variety of oncogenes into mice, using promoters to direct the genes to specific tissues. In this way, HHMI investigator Philip Leder and his co-workers at Harvard created and patented "onco-mice“ animals that reliably develop breast and lymph cancers. Onco-mice are being used worldwide to test drugs and therapies against those two forms of cancer. (www.hhmi.org/gentictrial/g110.html • Some people are more likely to develop certain cancers ,because they have inherted mutations in cancer – related genes. Such as the example of the chapter24 of the women with BRCA (breast cancer).

4. How many mutant genes are required to produce cancer? • A mutation in a single gene is not enough to produce cancer. Mutations in many important genes are required.

5. Whydoescancertendsto strike olderpeople? • Because mutations have had more time to build up in thier cells.