Genetic factors and cancer: diagnosis, prognosis and future perspectives

Abstract

Genetics is specifically responsible for several pathologies or, at the least, it is associated with a wide range of them, either as a primary causal agent (congenital genetic diseases) or secondary, being a factor within several possible for a given disease. One of the most critical genetic concepts is developed from the phenotype, equivalent to the genotype associated with the environment. In other words, for a condition to manifest itself, cancer, for example, we need a genetic alteration within the environment, which somehow influences carcinogenesis from stochastic or induced interactions. Cancer cases are approximately 80% and 90% associated with external causes, and environmental changes are mainly motivated by human actions, habits, and behavior, leading to an increased risk of different types of cancer. These changes lead to the formation of a cycle since man promotes environmental changes, leading to genetic modifications responsible for 10-20% of cancer formation. Although the percentage seems not to be significant, we have, in fact, several genetic mechanisms that will lead to the emergence of the most diverse types of cancer, including polymorphisms, mutations, oxidative stress, oncogenes, and genes that regulate the cell cycle, including apoptosis.