A new NHS database of genes linked to cancer could help UK patients and their families know whether they are at risk of developing cancer.
People will now be able to know their genetic information in a world-first register of 120 genes known to increase the likelihood of developing cancer, NHS England said.
People identified as having a genetic risk are offered regular testing and screening for certain cancers, including breast and prostate cancer. Patients can also be tested to see if they respond better to certain treatments, allowing for personalized care.
Health Secretary Wes Streeting said the “life-changing and life-saving” tool would speed up screening and help detect more cancers sooner.
Every year, tens of thousands of people with cancer, or those with a family history of cancer, undergo genetic testing on the NHS. People known to have a higher risk profile will be added to the new registry.
They will be provided with tailored information about what they can do to lower their chances of developing cancer or to detect cancer early.
The NHS said it was building a register. As part of a 10-year plan to improve cancer prevention and treatment.
NHS England’s national cancer director told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme: “We are the first health system to have all the information about all genetic risks in one place.”
Professor Peter Johnson said the idea was to bring together tests already offered to patients to check cancer incidence into a single register “so that we can reach out to people and offer them screening and, in some cases, preventive treatment”.
It added that this would allow practitioners to “monitor people” and offer new tests and treatments as they are rolled out, stressing that it would be “incredibly confidential and secure”.
Mr Johnson said it could be “very daunting” for people to know their cancer risk, but it meant the disease could be detected as early as possible.
The NHS said its National Inherited Cancer Predisposition Registry follows a similar database for Lynch syndrome, offering regular preventive screening to more than 12,000 people after they were identified as being at high risk.
Charlie Grinstead, 32, who was diagnosed with bowel cancer in 2020, said his Lynch syndrome diagnosis enabled him to undergo immunotherapy after chemotherapy had failed, which proved to be “the key to his recovery”.
Mr Street said: “One in two people will develop cancer in their lifetime, but that doesn’t mean the odds are random, and many people face a higher risk due to the genes they inherit.”
“And while we can’t do anything about the genes we inherit, we can do something about what we do with that information.”
He said the “world’s leading genetic registry” would allow for faster delivery of personalized preventive care.
“This register will not only accelerate innovation, it will change and save lives, enabling the NHS to develop tailored information for personalized care, faster screening and detecting more cancers earlier.”
Claire Rowney, chief executive of Breast Cancer Now, said the measure would “transform the lives of women who are at increased risk of breast cancer due to family history or genetics”.
She said it must be accessible to all clinicians and designed to ensure “collaborative care” is available to those with elevated risk profiles.
