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Family aggregation of cancer of the prostate in quebec: The tip of the iceberg
Author(s) -
Ghadirian Parviz,
Cadotte Marcel,
Lacroix André,
Perret Chantal
Publication year - 1991
Publication title -
the prostate
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.295
H-Index - 123
eISSN - 1097-0045
pISSN - 0270-4137
DOI - 10.1002/pros.2990190105
Subject(s) - prostate cancer , pedigree chart , etiology , cancer , medicine , family aggregation , family history , odds ratio , prostate , population , genetic predisposition , oncology , gynecology , disease , genetics , biology , environmental health , gene
Cancer of the prostate is one of the most common cancers among males in North America. Although some causative factors have been suggested by several surveys, the etiology of this common cancer is poorly understood. In a case‐control study of prostatic cancer in Greater Montreal, 21 of 140 patients with prostatic cancer (15.0%) gave a positive family history of the same cancer, as compared with two cases among 101 (2.0%) population‐based controls. This indicates about an eightfold difference in occurrence of cancer of the prostate among first‐degree family members of the case group with an odds ratio (OR) of 8.7 and 95% CI, 2.00–38.17. In this report we present the pedigrees of three families (two cases and one control) with four pathologically confirmed cases of cancer of the prostate in each family. This data suggest that a familial predisposition to prostatic cancer may become apparent in later decades of life. In these family aggregations, in addition to the genetic factors, environmental factors may also play an important role in the etiology of the same cancer among family members.