40 years of research into genetic causes of childhood and adolescent cancers

Cancer in children and adolescents is rare. Nevertheless, malignant diseases are still one of the most common causes of death in this age group. Survivors of childhood or adolescent cancer often suffer chronic health problems with increased morbidity and mortality rates.

The most important known risk factor for childhood cancer is genetic predisposition to cancer. Certain disease-associated variants in a person’s genes increase the risk of developing cancer.

“Understanding the causes of cancer in children and adolescents is essential in order to be able to treat cancer in this age group even better, detect it even earlier or even prevent it in future,” explains Prof. Dr. Christian Kratz, Director of the Department of Paediatric Haematology and Oncology at MHH.

Malignant diseases in children and adolescents have a hereditary component that is characterized by a complex architecture in which common gene variants at several gene loci and rare disease-associated gene variants can be involved. Environmental factors such as viral infections can also play a role. The first of many now known cancer predisposition genes (CPGs) was identified 40 years ago, which lead to an increased risk of cancer in the case of hereditary disease-associated variants.

These hereditary diseases are referred to as cancer predisposition syndromes (CPS), such as Li-Fraumeni syndrome or Fanconi anemia. Around 10% of all children and adolescents with cancer have CPS. There are also disease-causing gene variants that arise during embryonic development and can lead to cancer in the course of life. Those affected develop a mosaic disease in which both altered and healthy cells are present.

Professor Kratz has recently summarized this complex topic in a review paper for the journal Nature Reviews Cancer.

Provided by
Hannover Medical School