Mayo Clinic Laboratory and Pathology Research Roundup: May 29

The Research Roundup provides an overview of the past week’s research from Mayo Medical Laboratories consultants, including featured abstracts and complete list of published studies and reviews.


Featured Abstract

Evaluation of Polygenic Risk Scores for Breast and Ovarian Cancer Risk Prediction in BRCA1 and BRCA2 Mutation Carriers

Genome-wide association studies have identified 94 common single-nucleotide polymorphisms associated with breast cancer risk and 18 associated with ovarian cancer risk. Several of these are also associated with risk of breast cancer or ovarian cancer for women who carry a pathogenic mutation in the high-risk breast cancer and ovarian cancer genes BRCA1 or BRCA2. The combined effects of these variants on breast cancer or ovarian cancer risk for BRCA1 and BRCA2 mutation carriers have not yet been assessed while their clinical management could benefit from improved personalized risk estimates. Mayo Clinic researchers constructed polygenic risk scores using breast cancer and ovarian cancer susceptibility single-nucleotide polymorphisms identified through population-based genome-wide association studies: for breast cancer (overall, estrogen receptor-positive, and estrogen receptor-negative) and for ovarian cancer. The study found breast cancer and ovarian cancer polygenic risk scores are predictive of cancer risk in BRCA1 and BRCA2 carriers. Incorporation of the polygenic risk scores into risk prediction models has promise to better inform decisions on cancer risk management. The study was published in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute.


Published to PubMed This Week

Kelley Luedke

Kelley Luedke is a Marketing Channel Manager at Mayo Clinic Laboratories. She is the principle editor and writer of Insights and leads social media and direct marketing strategy. Kelley has worked at Mayo Clinic since 2013. Outside of work, you can find Kelley running, traveling, playing with her kitty, and exploring new foods.