Constitutional chromosome instability and cancer risk - PubMed (original) (raw)
Review
Constitutional chromosome instability and cancer risk
S Heim et al. Mutat Res. 1989 Jul.
Abstract
Acquired, clonal chromosome abnormalities are thought to be of pathogenetic importance in human cancer; at the cellular level, neoplasia is best viewed as a genetic disease. It is therefore logical to suggest that cancer risk must somehow be related to individual variations in genomic stability. Those persons whose chromosomes are less stable will, on average, be the ones who are most likely to develop cancer. The testing of this hypothesis shows that, apart from the autosomal recessive chromosome breakage syndromes, only patients with adenomatosis of the colon and rectum have, consistently and by different groups, been found to display elevated spontaneous and clastogen-induced chromosome breakage frequencies. Some evidence indicates a similar tendency in patients with dysplastic nevus syndrome, basal cell carcinoma, cervix cancer, and Kaposi's sarcoma. For several other cancers the data strongly argue against any inherent genomic instability. Although most results thus fail to support constitutional chromosome fragility as a factor of importance in tumorigenesis, conclusive falsification of the hypothesis cannot be said to have been obtained. The possibility remains that variations in chromosome stability and clastogen sensitivity between different cell types, and also difficulties in selecting the most appropriate carcinogens in clastogen-exposure tests, may have masked systematic constitutional differences between patients and controls in the breakage assays.
Similar articles
- Chromosomes and neoplasia.
Sanger WG. Sanger WG. Ann Clin Lab Sci. 1983 Sep-Oct;13(5):366-70. Ann Clin Lab Sci. 1983. PMID: 6227273 Review. - Chromosome breakage in lymphocytes from members of cancer families showing autosomal dominant inheritance.
Khouzam MN, Tsioupra K, Delhanty JD. Khouzam MN, et al. Clin Genet. 1990 Jul;38(1):51-6. doi: 10.1111/j.1399-0004.1990.tb03547.x. Clin Genet. 1990. PMID: 1696858 - Genetic predisposition to cancer with special reference to mutagen sensitivity.
Hsu TC. Hsu TC. In Vitro Cell Dev Biol. 1987 Sep;23(9):591-603. doi: 10.1007/BF02621067. In Vitro Cell Dev Biol. 1987. PMID: 3308827 Review. - LSD and genetic damage.
Dishotsky NI, Loughman WD, Mogar RE, Lipscomb WR. Dishotsky NI, et al. Science. 1971 Apr 30;172(3982):431-40. doi: 10.1126/science.172.3982.431. Science. 1971. PMID: 4994465 Review. - Genetic and environmental modulations of chromosomal stability: their roles in aging and oncogenesis.
Martin GM. Martin GM. Ann N Y Acad Sci. 1991;621:401-17. doi: 10.1111/j.1749-6632.1991.tb16995.x. Ann N Y Acad Sci. 1991. PMID: 1859100 Review.
Cited by
- Multiple constitutional chromosome translocations of familial nature in Philadelphia chromosome-positive chronic myeloid leukemia: a report on a unique case.
Kajtár B, Deák L, Kalász V, Pajor L, Molnár L, Méhes G. Kajtár B, et al. Int J Hematol. 2005 Nov;82(4):347-50. doi: 10.1532/IJH97.E0504. Int J Hematol. 2005. PMID: 16298829 - Genetic instability of cancer cells is proportional to their degree of aneuploidy.
Duesberg P, Rausch C, Rasnick D, Hehlmann R. Duesberg P, et al. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 1998 Nov 10;95(23):13692-7. doi: 10.1073/pnas.95.23.13692. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 1998. PMID: 9811862 Free PMC article. - Genetic instability in patients with Hodgkin's disease undergoing chemotherapy.
Abdallah JM, Lombardi DP, Kirsch IR. Abdallah JM, et al. J Clin Invest. 1995 Dec;96(6):2744-7. doi: 10.1172/JCI118343. J Clin Invest. 1995. PMID: 8675643 Free PMC article. - Cytogenetic studies in lymphocytes of patients with rectal cancer.
Gebhart E, Romahn R, Schneider A, Hoffmann M, Rau D, Tittelbach H. Gebhart E, et al. Environ Health Perspect. 1993 Oct;101 Suppl 3(Suppl 3):169-75. doi: 10.1289/ehp.93101s3169. Environ Health Perspect. 1993. PMID: 7511527 Free PMC article.