Tuesday, April 21, 2020

Ashkenazi Jewish Heritage and Genetic Cancer Risk


Many Jewish people who trace their ancestors to central or eastern Europe have Ashkenazi Jewish heritage. There are now Ashkenazi Jews all over the world, but centuries ago this population lived in one area and were isolated from other populations of people. Because of this, Ashkenazi Jews can trace their ancestors back to a small group of people. Over the years, genetic traits were passed down among this group with little influence from other population’s genes. There are a number of genetic disorders that are seen more commonly in the Ashkenazi population. Many couples have testing done to look for these disorders prior to having children. Some genetic mutations increase a person’s risk of developing a cancer. Check with you doctor if you believe you may be at risk.

*Shared from OncoLink.

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