Scientists may have solved the mystery of why people with Down’s seem to have a lower risk of some cancers.
The extra copy of chromosome 21 which causes Down’s appears to contain a gene that protects from solid cancerous tumours, tests on mice suggest. The gene seems to interfere with signals a tumour relies on to grow.
It has been known for some time that individuals with Down’s syndrome get certain types of cancer less often than those without the condition.
The latest study by the Children’s Hospital of Boston showed that having an extra copy of one of the genes located on chromosome 21 – a gene called Dscr1 – is sufficient to slow cancer growth in mice.
The gene seems to work in combination with another gene also found on chromosome 21 to interfere with the signals a tumour relies upon to stimulate growth of its own blood vessels.
Without those vessels feeding the tumour with its own supply of blood it cannot thrive.
[Source]
Chapter: Cancer,Health :: 3 June 2009
