Family colon cancer risk similar for siblings and half-siblings
If a half-sibling has colorectal cancer, then you have a 6% cumulative risk of developing the disease, say researchers
Siblings of people with colorectal cancer are at higher risk for the disease, but a new study suggests half-siblings face nearly the same risk.
In the BMJ research, siblings of colorectal cancer patients had a 7% cumulative lifetime risk of developing the tumours, which is 1.7 times the risk of colorectal cancer for people without any family history of these tumours.
Half-siblings of colorectal cancer patients had a 6% cumulative lifetime risk — which is 1.5 times the risk without a family history.
Researchers analysed data on more than 16 million people living in Sweden from 1958 to 2015.
