Abstract
The large intestine is one of the major sites for malignant disease in man, being in this respect second only to the lungs. About 16,500 persons die annually from colorectal cancer in England and Wales, and the tendency is for this figure to rise slowly. Considerable research has been directed at the problem of reducing the incidence of the disease and one of the main targets investigated has been the possibility that differences in environmental factors, such as diet and social habits, may be related to the variable incidence of colorectal cancer in different regions of the world. Any attempt to explain the aetiology of colorectal cancer cannot ignore what histopathological studies have revealed about the close relationship between intestinal adenomas and cancers. Moreover, such an attempt must also take into consideration the facts revealed by studies of the rare and interesting condition known as ‘familial polyposis coli’. Not only is it the outstanding example of the adenoma-carcinoma sequence, but it also introduces an irrefutable genetic factor into the problem.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Preview
Unable to display preview. Download preview PDF.
References
Bussey HJR (1975) Familial polyposis coli. Johns Hopkins University Press, Baltimore London
Bussey HJR (1979) Familial polyposis coli. In: Sommers SC, Rosen PP (eds) Pathology annual, part I, 1979. Appleton-Century-Crofts, New York, pp 61–81
Cripps WH (1882) Two cases of disseminated polyps of the rectum. Trans Pathol Soc Lond 33: 165–168
Dunstone GH, Knaggs TWL (1972) Familial cancer of the colon and rectum. J Med Genet 9: 451–456
Enterline HT, Evans GW, Mercado-Lugo R, Miller L, Fitts WT (1962) Malignant potential of adenomas of the colon and rectum. JAMA 179: 322–330
Gibbs NM (1967) Incidence and significance of argentaffin and Paneth cells in some tumours of the large intestine. J Clin Pathol 20: 826–831
Heald RJ, Bussey HJR (1975) Clinical experiences at St Mark’s Hospital with multiple synchronous cancers of the colon and rectum. Dis Colon Rectum 18: 6–10
Hill M (1978) Etiology of the adenoma-carcinoma sequence. In: Morson BC (ed) The pathogenesis of colorectal cancer. Saunders, Philadelphia London Toronto, pp 153–162
Hill MJ, Morson BC, Bussey HJR (1978) Aetiology of adenoma-carcinoma sequence in large bowel. Lancet 1: 245–247
Kluge T (1964) Familial cancer of the colon. Acta Chir Scand 127: 392–398
Lovett E (1976a) Familial cancer of the gastrointestinal tract. Br J Surg 63: 19–22
Lovett E (1976b) Family studies in cancer of the colon and rectum. Br J Surg 63: 13–18
Lynch HT, Krush AJ (1967) Heredity and carcinoma of the colon. Am J Med 53: 517–527
Macklin MT (1960) Inheritance of cancer of the stomach and large intestine in man. J Natl Cancer Inst 24: 551–571
Mathis M (1962) Familial carcinoma of the colon. A family tree from the Canton of Argau. Schweiz Med Wochenschr 92: 1673–1678
Morson BC (1974) The polyp-cancer sequence in the large bowel. Proc R Soc Med 67: 451–457
Morson BC, Dawson IMP (1979) Gastrointestinal pathology, 2nd edn. Blackwell Scientific, Oxford London Edinburgh Melbourne, p 615
Muto T, Bussey HJR, Morson BC (1975) The evolution of cancer of the colon and rectum. Cancer 36: 2251–2270
Oohara T, Ogino A, Saji K, Tohma H (1979) Difference of colonic mucosa as backgrounds of single advanced carcinoma, benign diseases and familial polyposis of the colon. Stomach and Intestine 14: 811–818
Veale AMO (1965) Intestinal polyposis. Cambridge University Press, London (Eugenics Laboratory Memoirs series no. 40 )
Woolf CM, Richards RC, Gardner EJ (1955) Occasional discrete polyps of the colon and rectum showing an inherited tendency in a kindred. Cancer 8: 403–408
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 1982 Springer-Verlag Berlin · Heidelberg
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Bussey, H.J.R. (1982). Genetic Factors. In: Duncan, W. (eds) Colorectal Cancer. Recent Results in Cancer Research, vol 83. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-81802-8_5
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-81802-8_5
Publisher Name: Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg
Print ISBN: 978-3-642-81804-2
Online ISBN: 978-3-642-81802-8
eBook Packages: Springer Book Archive