Men can pass on ovarian cancer gene

MEN have been found to be carriers of a genetic mutation which can cause ovarian cancer.

Fathers can pass on the deadly cancer, which kills more than 4,000 British women a year, to their daughters.

The genetic mutation, inherited from their mothers, raises their own risk of prostate cancer as well as threatening their daughters’ health.

Its discovery explains the mystery behind women being more likely to get ovarian cancer if their sisters have it than if their mother does. The common factor is their father, who passes it on through the X chromosome.

The as-yet unnamed mutation was found in a genetic study of 186 women with ovarian cancer by Roswell Park Cancer Institute in America. Campaigners hope it will raise awareness that men can also pass on ovarian cancer, as they do with the BRCA gene mutation.

This mutation, which famously prompted Hollywood actress Angelina Jolie to have her ovaries and fallopian tubes removed to reduce her risk of ovarian cancer, is passed on by both men and women.

Dr Kevin Eng, who led the US study, said: ‘Our study may explain why we find families with multiple affected daughters. Because a dad’s chromosomes determine the sex of his children, all of his daughters have to carry the same X chromosome genes.

‘What we have to do next is make sure we have the right gene by sequencing more families.’