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deCODE Discovers Fourth Set of Prostate Cancer Risk Variants, Now Integrated into deCODEme™
deCODE scientists today announced the discovery of two more genetic variants linked with increased risk of prostate cancer. These variants have been integrated into the prostate cancer disease module in deCODEme™, and subscribers can check for them in their updated personal profile.
These latest SNPs are the fourth set of variants that deCODE has linked to prostate cancer risk. They are single-letter variations in the genome - SNPs - located on chromosome 2 and on the X chromosome. The SNPs confer relatively modest increases in risk - of approximately 20% and 15% per copy carried, respectively - but because they are also quite common they are each believed to contribute to about 5% of prostate cancer cases. They were found through the analysis of 300,000 SNPs in 23,000 Icelanders in deCODE's prostate cancer studies, and then confirmed in an analysis of more than 15,500 individuals from seven different cohorts from Europe and the United States.
Published studies by major academic research groups in the United States and Europe have over the past month provided strong validation of the role of the other common risk variants, on chromosomes 8 and 17, discovered by deCODE in 2006 and 2007. Altogether, the prostate cancer risk variants now included in deCODEme™ contribute to more than 50% of all cases of the disease. Because of these variants, 10% of men are at twice the risk and 1% of men are at three times the risk of the disease in the general population.
For those subscribers who believe they should consider having a DNA-based diagnostic test for prostate cancer risk variants that they can use with their doctor, deCODE has also just launched deCODEPrCa™, the first such test aimed at understanding individual risk of the disease.
more news
deCODE welcomes signing of GINA
deCODE genetics welcomes the signing of the Genetic Information Non-discrimination Act (GINA), a bill that, many years in the making, has now been signed by President Bush. GINA will provide a federal counterpart to existing legislation in many states prohibiting discrimination against individuals in matters of employment or healthcare coverage based upon the results of genetic tests or other genetic information.
April 27, 2008deCODE Scientists Discover Another Set of Common Genetic Variants Linked to Risk of Breast Cancer
Scientists from deCODE genetics today report the discovery of two common single-letter variants (SNPs) associated with risk of estrogen receptor-positive (ER+) breast cancer. More than 60% of the general population carry at least one copy of the risk variant of the most important SNP
April 02, 2008A Smoking Gene: deCODE Scientists Identify a Genetic Variant that Confers Nicotine Dependence
Scientists from deCODE have identified a clear link between a genetic variant and susceptibility to nicotine dependence. Results will be published in the April 3 issue of Nature.
March 16, 2008deCODE Obesity Study Sheds Light on how Genetics Affects Risk and Onset of Common Diseases
In a paper published online today in the journal Nature, a team of deCODE scientists detail a major mechanism through which genetic factors contribute to major public health problems.