The development of cancer is the result of changes to the genome of a single cell. Most mutations in the genome are repaired by the cells immediately without permanent damage. If the cells fail to repair the damage, it may lead to a change in the characteristics of the cell, ultimately developing into a tumor. For instance, if the change results in the inactivation of a tumor suppressor gene, which guards the cell against uncontrolled division, the cell may become cancerous. Even small changes to the genome can cause this characteristic change.
If DNA repair mechanisms and regulation of cell growth and division are damaged, the cell will begin to divide uncontrollably and a tumor will form. Over time the tumor cells accumulate further mutations, they diverge from their original function and ignore regulatory mechanisms. This then leads to an increase in the ability for daughter cells to grow in other tissues called metastasis.
- Complete panel for hereditary Tumor Syndromes covers 124 genes. All of these genes are sequenced simultaneously. Only genes which have an association with the phenotype of the patient will be interpreted. For diagnostic purposes, each of the gene sets can be requested individually or in combination. A combination of individual genes is also possible.
- Breast cancer
- Colorectal cancer
- Prostate cancer
- Gastric cancer
- Cowden syndrome
- Ovarian cancer
- Pheochromocytoma and paraganglioma
- CNS cancers
- Renal cell carcinoma
- Xeroderma pigmentosum
- Melanoma