BRCA2 Gene News and Research

RSS

BRCA2 is a gene on chromosome 13 that normally helps to suppress cell growth. A person who inherits certain mutations (changes) in a BRCA2 gene has a higher risk of getting breast, ovarian, prostate, and other types of cancer.

Women with ovarian cancer having BRCA2 gene mutations are more likely to survive

Women with ovarian cancer who have the BRCA2 gene mutation are more likely to survive the malignancy than women with the BRCA1 mutation, or women without either mutation.

5 Apr 2011

Gene that causes rare breast cancer identified

Researchers have found that a rare but hard-to-treat form of breast cancer is driven by a newly discovered gene. The gene ZNF703 is the first oncogene to be discovered in five years, and it could lead to more effective treatments down the road, Cancer Research UK said.

20 Feb 2011

Biologist investigates CAPV-EAE population for hereditary breast and ovary cancer

Between 5 % and 10 % of breast cancer cases are hereditary, arising because the patient inherits from the father or mother a mutation in a gene that is susceptible to causing the illness. BRCA1 and BRCA2 have already been identified as two of the genes to be monitored. It is estimated that 30 % of hereditary breast cancer cases are due to mutations in one of these two genes.

19 Feb 2011

Women and cancer today

Experts have warned that women who have their breasts removed out of fear of a high hereditary risk of breast cancer may be doing so needlessly. Genetic tests like for the BRCA mutations have predicted a high risk of getting breast cancer in women with many breast cancer sufferers among their first degree relatives. Earlier studies suggest the risk of the mutation to predict the cancer 87% of the time. Now experts want that this is an overestimate.

11 Nov 2010

Study finds genetic variants that may modify breast cancer risk among women with BRCA2 mutation

An international study led by researchers at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center has identified genetic variants in women with BRCA2 mutations that may increase or decrease their risk of developing breast cancer. The study was published today online in the open-access journal PLoS Genetics.

29 Oct 2010

Rad51 protein plays a key role in DNA protection

Cancer Research UK scientists have shed new light on the vital role that a protein plays in protecting our DNA, reveals a study published in Nature Structural and Molecular Biology today.

12 Oct 2010

AACR announces recipients of Outstanding Investigator Award for Breast Cancer Research

The 33rd Annual CTRC-AACR San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium will honor two leading breast cancer researchers during its meeting, which will be held Dec. 8-12 in the Henry B. Gonzales Convention Center, San Antonio, Texas. Klaus Pantel, M.D., Ph.D., is the recipient of the 2010 AACR Outstanding Investigator Award for Breast Cancer Research, funded by Susan G. Komen for the Cure.

12 Oct 2010

Preventive surgery protects against breast, ovarian cancer in women carrying BRCA1, BRCA2 gene mutations

Women who have gene mutations that put them at high risk of ovarian and breast cancer can significantly reduce the risk of developing or dying from these cancers by having their healthy ovaries or breasts removed, according to a new study reported in the Sept. 1 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association.

3 Sep 2010

Researchers find new way to study oncogene's role in DNA repair

A key step in understanding the origins of familial breast cancer has been made by two teams of scientists at the University of California, Davis. The researchers have purified, for the first time, the protein produced by the breast cancer susceptibility gene BRCA2 and used it to study the oncogene's role in DNA repair.

23 Aug 2010

Experimental drug benefits women with advanced ovarian or breast tumours caused by BRCA gene faults

An experimental drug called olaparib has been shown to shrink tumours in women whose advanced cancers were caused by faults in their BRCA genes.

17 Aug 2010

Study finds Olaparib can reduce tumor size in ovarian cancer women

Understanding the underlying genetic weakness of certain types of cancer may lead to targeted therapy and provide the key to effective treatment, a new study suggests. An international consortium of researchers has shown that an investigational drug, Olaparib, can reduce the size of tumors in women with advanced hereditary ovarian cancer with BRCA gene mutations.

13 Aug 2010

Males with faulty BRCA2 genes at risk of breast cancer

Men who carry a faulty version of the BRCA2 gene have an estimated one-in-15 chance of developing breast cancer by the time they reach 70, British scientists have found.

9 Jul 2010

Novel therapy slows tumor growth in 85% of advanced breast cancer patients: Study

A novel therapy designed to attack tumors in patients with a genetic mutation in either BRCA1 or BRCA2, slowed tumor growth in 85 percent of advanced breast cancer patients treated in a small study, researchers report in the July 6 issue of The Lancet.

6 Jul 2010

PARP inhibitors may be effective in men with prostate cancer due to BRCA2 alteration: Researchers

The way prostate cancer develops in men who have an altered 'breast cancer gene' is the same route by which breast cancer develops in women with the same mutation, reveals a study published in PLoS Genetics today (Thursday).

25 Jun 2010

Lawsuit to be launched over breast cancer gene patent

BRCA1 and BRCA2 are two genes that have been identified to hold a key to women’s susceptibility to get breast or ovarian cancer. Changes also known as mutations in these genes are significant in women who go on to develop breast or ovarian cancer. Melbourne-based company Genetic Technologies Limited (GTL) has the exclusive license from American biotechnology company Myriad Genetics to carry out testing for the genes in Australia. Myriad holds a patent for these genes.

7 Jun 2010

Double mastectomy best for long-term prognosis of breast cancer

When Cedric Skillom's mother, Lynda, 55, was diagnosed with an aggressive form of breast cancer, he was devastated by the news, but he never imagined that the largest cancer killer of women would strike his own health.

10 May 2010

Discovery of new genetic clues to breast cancer

Researchers at Cambridge University have identified five genetic clues for women who have a family history of breast cancer. The study brings up the number of common genetic variations linked to increased risk of breast cancer in women to 18. The study was published in Nature Genetics.

9 May 2010

Studies shed light on treatment options for women carrying BRCA1 and BRCA2 genetic mutations

Two studies to be presented at the seventh European Breast Cancer Conference (EBCC7) in Barcelona today (Friday) and tomorrow (Saturday), shed light on the treatment options facing women carrying the BRCA1 and BRCA2 genetic mutations which predispose them to breast cancer.

27 Mar 2010

Study finds 15-year outcomes of BCT and mastectomy similar

26 Mar 2010

Major study shoots for personalized breast cancer drugs

Mutations in BCRA1 and BCRA2 genes are mainly associated with increased risk of breast cancer in women. Recently many other genetic variants have been found to be associated with breast cancer.

19 Mar 2010