It’s all in our genes. Our eye color, the shape of our nose, even some personality traits. You can almost always tell a child is related to their parents by the common looks.

Unfortunately, some diseases are also passed on genetically. And, unlike appearance or personality traits, putting you alongside your folks will not give a hint of whether you inherited them or not. You might harbor the propensity for the disease and not know anything about it. That is, until it strikes.

Lucky for you, there are some things you can do to discover your predilection to a certain disease, and prevent it on time. We’ll discuss 5 such diseases here:

DNA. It’s all in our genes. Photo by mknowles

1. Breast Cancer – 1 out of 10 women with breast cancer has an inherited cause for it. If you have any of these, you might be in that group:
   a. A diagnosis of breast cancer before age 50
   b. A diagnosis of two separate breast cancers
   c. A breast cancer along with another cancer, such as ovarian, pancreatic, colon, thyroid, stomach or melanoma
   d. A family member that has any of the above 3
   e. A male family member with breast cancer (men usually do not get this cancer)
   f. You are an Ashkenazi Jew diagnosed with breast cancer.

   Of course, a-c are too late for early discovery. But, if you have a family member with any of these, it might be worth asking your doctor for genetic counseling. There are some genes known to cause inherited breast cancer. The most common of these are BRCA1 and BRCA2. If you are found to have any of these, measures to prevent the disease from occurring can help.

2. Heart Disease – Heart attacks have been connected to many risk factors, such as smoking, hypertension, obesity and others. Some of the risk factors are also genetic: If you have a first-degree relative (a parent or sibling) with a heart disease causing heart attack at an early age your risk is higher.

   What’s an early age? If your relative is a man with a heart disease before age 55 or a woman with a heart disease before age 65 your risk is higher.

   What can you do about it? Since having those familial risk factors puts you at a higher risk, you have to be extra careful about heart disease prevention. This means quitting smoking, eating right, exercising, losing some weight. We will feature an in depth article on the subject soon. Until we do, if you have a family member with a heart disease at an early age, you’re advised to visit your doctor.

3. Colon Cancer – Like in breast cancer, about 1 out of 10 people will have a genetic cause for their colon cancer. Colon cancer is the third most common type of cancer, and the second leading cause of cancer-related death in the Western world.

   If you have any of these, you might be at risk for an inherited cause:
   a. A diagnosis of colon cancer before age 50.
   b. A diagnosis of colon cancer and another cancer, like uterine, ovarian or stomach cancer.
   c. Polyps in your colon before age 40
   d. Family members with any of the above

   As in breast cancer, a-c are too late for early prevention. But knowing of a family member that has any of them may help you discover your risk early. As well as just “plain” higher risk, there are syndromes that put people at risk at an early age (the 20s) which you should know about if they run in your family.

   What can you do about it? If you suspect that you might be at risk, you should ask your doctor for genetic counseling. Preventive measures, such as discovery of polyps through a colonoscopy and early removal of parts of the colon may save your life.

4. Hemochromatosis – This is a relatively common inherited disease. It causes the body to absorb too much iron, which causes it to accumulate in the liver, skin, pancreas, heart, joints and testes. This can lead to severe liver problems, diabetes, heart failure and other problems.

   One out of 200-400 people carries a genetic mutation which causes this disease.

   What can you do? You can get genetic counseling to see if you carry the mutation. If you do, simple measures can be taken to prevent its outcomes, such as regularly removing blood from the body in order to remove the excess iron, and a proper diet.

5. Prostate Cancer – This is the most common cancer in American men. What should raise your suspicion of having a genetic predisposition for it?
   a. A diagnosis of prostate cancer before age 55
   b. Many family members with prostate cancer in many generations
   c. A family member with prostate as well as breast or ovarian cancer.

   Any of these might raise the suspicion for a genetic cause and warrant a visit to the doctor for genetic counseling. BRCA1 and BRCA2 mentioned above for breast cancer are also related to prostate cancer. If you are found to be in a higher risk due to genetic reasons there are measures to detect early cancer and to prevent it.

What next?

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