What if I have a family history of colorectal cancer?

What if I have a family history of colorectal cancer?

Your doctor may recommend earlier screening for colorectal cancer if you have a family history of the condition. To determine the appropriate age to start screening, your doctor will discuss all of your risk factors with you. These risk factors can include a family or personal history of polyps, a history of cancer in the abdomen, and a history of inflammatory bowel disease.

Some studies have found that having a first-degree relative with colorectal cancer puts you at a risk that is 2-3 times higher than someone without a first-degree relative with colorectal cancer. A first-degree relative is defined as your mother, your father, your brother or sister, and your child. Your risk can also be higher if you have other people in your family with colorectal cancer, even if they are not first-degree relatives. They could be grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins, nieces and nephews, even grandchildren.

The age at which any relative is diagnosed is also important. The risk to you is more significant when the relative is diagnosed before age 45.

About 75% of people who do get colorectal cancer do not get it because of genetics. About 10% to 30% do have a family history of the disease.

If you do have relatives that have been diagnosed with colorectal cancer, your healthcare provider may also recommend genetic testing and/or genetic counseling. Certain DNA mutations are inherited and are linked to colorectal cancers. Genetic testing may provide the information needed to know if you are at a higher risk, so that you can have the correct screening at the right time and possibly stop cancer before it develops or at a very early stage.