Familial Correlations of the Ages of Manifestation of Lung Cancer and Large-Intestine Cancer

Abstract

The probability to develop lung cancer before 80 years of age is 1.67 and 0.18% for the male and female populations of Kharkov, respectively; the probability to develop large-intestine cancer is 0.92 and 0.49%, respectively. The correlation coefficient (r) of the age of manifestation (AM) of cancer in parent–offspring pairs is 0.47. These correlation coefficients for the father–son, mother–daughter, mother–son, and father–daughter pairs are 0.64, 0.49, 0.44, and 0.37, respectively. If the parent has lung cancer, the correlation is stronger (r = 0.71). On average, cancer is manifested in offspring earlier than in parents (57 and 63 years, respectively); the differences in the father–daughter and mother–son pairs are 8.2 and 2.8 years, respectively. The best prognostic parameter is the AM of cancer in the father with respect to the AM in the son (b yx = 0.45).