Telomeres are essential to preserve the integrity of the genome. Critically short telomeres lead to replicative cell senescence and chromosomal instability and may thereby increase cancer risk.
Leukocyte telomere length was measured by quantitative polymerase chain reaction in 787 participants free of cancer at baseline in 1995 from a prospective, population-based study in Italy. The follow-up period was 10 years.
11.7% of participants developed cancer (incidence rate, 13.3 per 1000 person-years).
References:
Telomere Length and Risk of Incident Cancer and Cancer Mortality. Peter Willeit, MD; Johann Willeit, MD; Agnes Mayr, MD; Siegfried Weger, MD; Friedrich Oberhollenzer, MD; Anita Brandstätter, PhD; Florian Kronenberg, MD; Stefan Kiechl, MD. JAMA. 2010;304(1):69-75.
Posted at Clinical Cases and Images. Stay updated and subscribe, follow us on Twitter and connect on Facebook.
Recommendation and review posted by G. Smith