According to research to be published in the April 30 issue of Nature Genetics, there may be unknown genes that cause familial breast cancer in addition to the identified genes BRCA1 and BRCA2. In December 1995, scientists had estimated that BRCA2 would play a role in 45 percent of inherited cases of breast cancer. However, a recent study of 49 families in Canada expected to carry the gene found that BRCA2 was responsible for breast cancer in only eight of the families. Other articles in the journal show that different ethnic groups have different mutations of BRCA2 and suggest that the gene may cause other forms of cancer in addition to breast cancer and may act in conjunction with another gene.
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