I don't understand why they haven't figured out that all the crap they (FDA allows) put into our food and the water we drink is causing all the cancers. Why can't they do something about that. You never heard of cancer years ago, when people grew their own vegies and raised their own meat. Let's everybody wake up and start buying organic groceries and taking herbal remedies instead of making the pharmaceutical companies and doctors rich.

nancy, wethersfield, ct, usa

Jack Stephens: While we are at it, why not screen for the full panoply of physical and mental maladies so as to "reduce their presence in the population" as well. Nothing like a little eugenics to keep the population "clean". The clear implication of your comment is that those who develop breast cancer would have been better off not having been part of the population to begin with. That is patently false and ethically deplorable. Life isn't risk free, and some risks (e.g. that of getting cancer or MS or manic depression) are worth taking. That is especially true when the alternative is to create a human race in the image of some ideal that is almost certainly imbued through and through with some crypto-Aryan ideology.

John, Tulsa, Oklahoma

DCA people. Why has the press ignored THAT breakthrough in cancer treatment?

Google: DCA + Metabolism + Cancer

The simple, already on the market drug previously used for metabolism disorders that cures cancers in lab studies with rats.

raski, new york city,

In the US, California's largest insurer has already been discovered to retroactively cancel policies and deny coverage of members who make claims for major illness or treatment. Others are being denied new policies for preexisting allergies and other minor conditions. This is winding through the courts and will likely result in the insurer paying some miniscule "fine". Any American considering genetic testing MUST ensure that the testing is completely anonymous.

Sandy, Santa Clarita, CA, USA

Isn't this announcement a little late? Aren't these "breakthroughs" usually announced in early spring during the annual fund-raising campaign for the cancer-cure industry?

Will Shank, Toronto, Canada

I cannot believe the idiocy of the guys here.
All they are worried is what the insurance companied will do!

Maybe they will do something like this, if you are not "eligible" for cancer then you get a cheaper rate, if you are then you pay higher premium! After all why should I pay the cost to prevent other people of getting cancer?

Then here you go, to those that say that this does no good, because what do we get out of knowing without a cure. Don't you guys know that the erlier you know the better? If the poor guy will know that he might get it, he'll be on the look out!

Henry, Othersville, Island

12-15 more years of research to get this done. Typical. They'll (scientist/researchers) milk this cash cow as long as they can. In that amount of time NASA will send a crew to Mars and back, but the researchers can't get this done sooner. This is always the case, the cancer researchers come out with breaking news, but the punch line is always the same, "It will take another 15 years until the research is done and it will be applied to human trials." While millions die of this vivious disease.

Gino, Novi, USA

James

We/they?...do you work for "the industry"

the only way they can get the information is for the "patient confidentiality" law to be broken through deciet or bribe

people will always carry insurance for one reason or another...so, NO!...the industry will not collapse

Chuck

Chuck, Columbus, Ohio, USA

Wonderful news. Now for all the men with testicular cancer or candidates for this dreadful disease (4 times as many men have this form than women with breast cancer), any good news?

JJ, Toronto, Canada

Cancer is mostly uncurable. It is caused by a genetic mutation, these cells divide rapidly and fatally drain the body. These mutations are by definition rarely genetic as a mutation is anomalous DNA. Some cancers are genetic, so brilliant news, but false hope helps nobody.

Ben, York,

And if you are those 1 of 6, the insurance industry, since they won't be able to deny coverage, will pay for more frequent testing to prevent later payout for surgery and therapy.

L Ludlum, Schriever, LA

This could help screen embryos for cancer genes and over time greatly reduce their presence in the population.

jack stephens, Pituffik, Greenland,

To follow on from what some have said already about the health insurance implications, there is a chance, with the availability of this kind of information, that the health insurance industry would collapse:

The problem is, even IF the insurance companies WEREN'T allowed access to your health information and disease susceptability, there is an issue of hidden information - whereby if the insurance company knows that you are able to find out about your susceptability to cancer, for example, then if you go to them asking for cover, they can logically conclude that it's because you've had the screening and have been told that you're at risk.

We/they can also conclude that those who have the screening and are not likely to develop cancer (or other diseases) will not bother to buy any insurance. Thus, the only ones to buy insurance will be those who are likely to get ill... and so the industry collapses.

James Burt, London, UK

As someone involved both ingenetic research and clinics, I would like to reassure everybody this is great new to patients. First legislation is still not allowing genetic screening for insurancepurposes. And second, awareness about the presence of risk factors would allow doctors to focus their attention onhigh risk patients. The idea being to examine them a lot more extensively and maybe more frequently.
If a tumor is detected in time, it is possible to resect just the diseased tissue, without any significant nuisance to patients, without need for chemotherapy (which is normally reserved to more advanced, often metastasized cases) or esthetic consequences. Also these discoveries might improve treatment in the not so long term.
Let's not be cynical here, of all genetic discoveries, this is the one most likely to be immediately useful to patients. This is good news, please give researchers some credit for it!

Astrit, Los Angeles, CA,

There is a process called Lifeline Screening here in the USA. I have done it now 3 times. I am 68. I know that it is helpful because now I can take the pics to my doctor and he can evaluate them as to whether I need carotid artery help or not. I will know myself in 3 weeks whether I do. Any BP, arterial help screening or gene mapping of any kind that can aid patients is a God-send.

Glenn Koons, Long Beach, USA, Ca.

The life insurance industry can't wait for this to come to fruition! Good luck getting life/health insurance if you are one of those one in six!

Robert, Las Cruces, USa

Screening technology is a breakthrough for breast cancer ,
I wonder that other cancers will be sought with the advanced
creation.

Dick, Shenyang, CHINA

Ok, so it may be possible in 10-12 years to "predict" who "may" develop cancer. This is interesting, but this isn't a cure. Also, it could very well backfire on people. Do you think a health insurance company will cover someone who is prescreened as highly succeptible to cancer? I think not. Being able to predetermine who most likely will develope a disease without having a "viable" corrective ability for the disease is actually a dangerous knowledge.

John, St. Robert, USA, Missouri

Just answering Jaded comments......by deducing who (which includes ordinary people!) is predisposed to a specific cancer, will help us prevent the cancer from presenting/manifesting itself. This will ultimately improve prognosis, as you are treating the cancer before it physically even becomes "a cancer".....

It's primary prevention!

Bhav, Norwich,

Will someone please explain to me why this is such a breakthrough? Great... so they will be able to calculate your risk of developing breast cancer. If you want to impress me, find a way to pinpoint the rouge genes and destroy them (and only them), not just giving me my chances of getting breast cancer in my lifetime. I'd rather not know my chances of developing cancer, if there is no benefit to knowing (like a cure).

Linda, Southaven, MS

Check out a Canadian company called Biocurex ... they seem to be on the verge of commercializing a new biomarker that can detect many types of cancer. They are working on imaging applications using their technology to locate cancers, and have also started work on therapeutics for treating cancer. They seem to be on the right track, much more so than some of these genetic researchers.

TB, Phoenix, AZ

I think this is great. Now that we can identify these genes, what are we going to do with that information? We need to find something to stop the cancer from happening! It's great information and maybe with that we can do just that.
Thank you to all who work on these things.
A 7 year breast cancer survivor from Massachusetts.

J. Ramondelli, Lunenburg, USA, MA

How will insurance companies use this information? Hopefully laws will prevent insurance companies from denying coverage on the basis of these types of screenings.

John Doe, Somewhere, USA

Insurance companies will LOVE this... they can tell in advance
who may get cancer and deny them coverage!! whoopee!! hurray!!

What GOOD does this do for the afflicted???????

yeah, maybe they'll know in advance they could get a certain
type of deadly cancer and be on the look out for it, but if they have
NO HEALTH CARE what difference does it make???

sorry to seem so jaded.... but... really, what good does this
do for ordinary people??? please fill me in. thanks.....

Jaded, Nashville,

Oh, Just great. So a person is told you have 10 times better
chance of developing breast cancer during your life.
But we have no clue how to actually cure this disease
other than a) chop off your tit, or b) radiate you to near death
and totally posion you and hope that it dies.

Then you have to cross your fingers and hope it doesn't
return.

Just great.

Wally, Titsville, PA, USA

Thank you to these great people!

adam, smith, Brussels, Belgium

great, hopefully we can cure cancer before we cause global warming and all die anyway from a wierd epidemic or pandemic...avian bird flue ..the plague...a wild virus...or what have you. *This set of papers points to the future*...the last line of the story ...fat slobs choking in their own smog.....thats what is really scary!

Chaz, Ktown, Canada

Thank to these great people!

adam, smith, Brussels, Belgium