Posts Tagged ‘asian’

Thirty six percent of East Asians (Japanese, Chinese, and Koreans) show a characteristic physiological response to consuming alcohol that includes facial flushing , nausea, and tachycardia. This “alcohol blush” is now considered a risk factor for esophageal cancer, one of the deadliest cancers worldwide with a 5-year survival rate of only 15.6% in the United States. Heavy alcohol consumption greatly increases the risk for esophageal cancer among these individuals, who comprise about 8% of the world’s population. Therefore, by simply knowing whether you have this this characteristic response to alcohol, you can decrease your esophageal cancer risk by limiting alcohol intake.

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New research published in the Journal of Clinical Oncology finds that the current computer models used to determine breast cancer risk appears to underestimate the true risk in Asian women. Oncologists use computer models to identify women who might have certain genetic mutations which increase their risk of breast and ovarian cancer. Those women deemed by the models to be likely carriers of the BRCA1 and BRCA2 gene mutations are then referred for genetic testing of these genes. The researchers found that the models were highly accurate in predicting the presence of mutations in white women, but falls short when it comes to Asians. It’s yet unclear why this is the case. They suspect that inheritance patterns common in white women may be different in the Asian population. The researchers emphasize the need for further investigation into the genetic variability of different ethnic groups. Full story.

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