Concerned reader asks:

Is the risk of cancer hereditary?

Regular check-ups are one of the most important measures.(Bild: goodluz/stock.adobe.com)

Readers ask, experts answer on the most pressing health issues. Hermann K. (54): "I would like to know whether the risk of cancer is hereditary. Because there have been several cases of breast, prostate and bowel cancer in my family. That scares me." 

Dr. Barbara Mooslechner F.E.B.S, specialist in general and visceral surgery: " The fact that there have been cases of cancer in your family does not automatically mean that you will also suffer from such a disease. Hereditary predisposition accounts for only about 5% of all tumors. If you suspect a hereditary predisposition, you can undergo genetic counseling or testing. However, it is important to know that although a positive test result means a significantly higher risk, it does not mean that the person affected will develop a carcinoma.

Furthermore, it is also not possible to predict what type of cancer you will develop, when you will develop it or whether you will be affected at all. Conversely, a negative test only indicates that there is no genetic risk. However, cancer can still develop in the course of a lifetime. This makes screening, which is well established in Germany, especially for prostate, colon and breast cancer, all the more important.

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Men should start prostate cancer screening from the age of 40 if their brothers and/or fathers have or have had a prostate tumor. This is because they themselves are twice as likely to suffer from it in the course of their lives. Bowel cancer, on the other hand, can be prevented in 9 out of 10 cases through appropriate screening. This is why the new guidelines include a screening colonoscopy from the age of 45.

However, if a close relative, such as a parent, has bowel cancer, you should have a colonoscopy for the first time ten years before the age of onset of the disease or at the latest at the age of 40. Mammography as breast cancer screening is recommended for women over the age of 40 every two years.