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Clinical Cancer Genetics Disparities among Latinos

  • Review Paper
  • Published:
Journal of Genetic Counseling

Abstract

The three major hereditary cancer syndromes in Latinos (Hereditary Breast and Ovarian Cancer, Familial Adenomatous Polyposis and Lynch Syndrome) have been shown to exhibit geographic disparities by country of origin suggesting admixture-based disparities. A solid infrastructure of clinical genetics geared towards diagnosis and prevention could aid in reducing the mortality of these cancer syndromes in Latinos. Currently, clinical cancer genetic services in Latin America are scarce. Moreover, limited studies have investigated the mutational spectrum of these cancer syndromes in Latinos resulting in gaps in personalized medicine affecting diagnosis, treatment and prevention. The following commentary discusses available genotype and clinical information on hereditary cancer in Latinos and highlights the limited access for cancer genetic services in Latin America including barriers to genetic testing and alternatives for providing better access to genetic services. In this review, we discuss the status of clinical genetic cancer services for both US Latinos and those Latinos living in Latin America.

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Acknowledgements

This work was supported by grant number U54CA096297 and grant number 1U54CA163071-01A1. Furthermore, we want to thank the support of the Puerto Rico Clinical and Translational Research Consortium (8U54MD007587-03).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Division of Cancer Biology, University of Puerto Rico Comprehensive Cancer Center, PMB711 Ave. De Diego 89 Ste. 105, San Juan, PR, 00927-6346, USA

    Marcia Cruz-Correa, Julyann Pérez-Mayoral, Sharee Umpierre, Segundo Rodriguez-Quilichini, Maria Gonzalez-Pons & Myrta I. Olivera

  2. Department of Medicine, University of Puerto Rico School of Medicine, San Juan, PR, USA

    Marcia Cruz-Correa, Julyann Pérez-Mayoral, Maria Gonzalez-Pons & Myrta I. Olivera

  3. Ponce Research Institute, Ponce Health Sciences University, Ponce, PR, USA

    Julie Dutil

  4. Cancer Center, Auxilio Mutuo Hospital, San Juan, PR, USA

    Miguel Echenique

  5. Puerto Rico Gastroenterology Association, San Juan, PR, USA

    Rafael Mosquera

  6. Department of Pediatrics, University of Puerto Rico School of Medicine, San Juan, PR, USA

    Keila Rivera-Román

  7. Department of Pathology, University of Puerto Rico School of Medicine, San Juan, PR, USA

    Sherly Pardo

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  1. Marcia Cruz-Correa
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  2. Julyann Pérez-Mayoral
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  3. Julie Dutil
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  4. Miguel Echenique
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  5. Rafael Mosquera
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  8. Segundo Rodriguez-Quilichini
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  9. Maria Gonzalez-Pons
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  10. Myrta I. Olivera
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  11. Sherly Pardo
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on behalf of the Puerto Rico Clinical Cancer Genetics Consortia

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Correspondence to Marcia Cruz-Correa.

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Cruz-Correa, M., Pérez-Mayoral, J., Dutil, J. et al. Clinical Cancer Genetics Disparities among Latinos. J Genet Counsel 26, 379–386 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10897-016-0051-x

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