Gene defect raises lung cancer risk

A STUDY in the United States has found that an often undetected gene defect can double the risk of contracting lung cancer.

A deficiency of a protein called alpha 1-antitrypsin can make the body more receptive to carcinogenic substances, says Professor Helmut Teschler of Germany's Society for Pneumology and Respiratory Medicine (DGP) in reference to the study's findings.

People with the gene defect are more susceptible to the harmful substances contained in tobacco products and are advised to quit smoking immediately.

The metabolic disease Alpha 1-Antitrypsin Deficiency only develops fully when the gene defect is present in two versions.

Carriers are unaware they have the defect, but are nevertheless twice as likely to develop lung cancer than a person without the mutation.

Those most commonly affected have a family history of lung cancer and should be tested for Antitrypsin Deficiency as soon as possible, the DGP recommended.

The study examined 1,856 lung cancer patients of whom 12 per cent had the gene defect.