Newly-discovered gene ‘doubles lung cancer risk in smokers’

Researchers have identified a gene variant that further elevates the already high risk of lung cancer among smokers.

Conducted by the Institute of Cancer Research in London and supported by Cancer Research UK, the variation – which affects about two percent of the population – occurs in the BRCA2 gene, which has previously been linked to breast and ovarian cancer.

Smokers generally have a 13 percent lifetime risk of lung cancer, but this probability rose to 25 percent if they carried this gene variant. However, the study also yielded positive news, as it opens up the possibility of personalised treatment for lung cancer patients with BRCA2 mutations.

It could also mean that current treatments targeting BRCA2 designed for breast and ovarian cancer may also be effective in lung cancer.

Study leader Professor Richard Houlston, from the Institute of Cancer Research in London, said: "We know that the single biggest thing we can do to reduce death rates is to persuade people not to smoke, and our new findings make plain that this is even more critical in people with an underlying genetic risk."

Lung cancer is the second most common cancer in the UK. Around 43,500 people are diagnosed each year, with 86 percent of these cases caused by smoking.