Knowing His Family Health History Prompted Action
When William Nijjer found out colorectal cancer ran in his family, he started getting colonoscopies every two years.
William Nijjer, Left Enjoying a Beer
William Nijjer's grandfather died at 62 in 1972, and the family never talked about why. Decades later his son Harjit, a nurse in the UK, was diagnosed with colorectal cancer at 48. When Harjit tested positive for Lynch syndrome, his son, William, decided to get tested too, and at 26 he found out he carried it as well.
Each generation learned earlier than the last, and what moved the date up was a family that shared what may be embarrassing to help the next generation.
“It's not what you want to do as a parent. It's the last thing you want to do,” said Harjit in a BBC report. "It's the guilt you carry," the 59-year-old said, now in remission. "Things you'd want to pass on to your children - good looks, intelligence - but not something like this."
You may never have heard of Lynch syndrome and neither have about one million Americans who carry one of the Lynch syndrome genes. If you have Lynch syndrome, your risk of colorectal cancer by age 70 goes from about 2% to as high as 50%, depending on which of the five Lynch genes you carry.
With William’s father testing positive and his grandfather dying at such an early age, William decided to get the test too. At 26, he also tested positive for Lynch syndrome.
William said he wanted to find out if he had inherited the disease so he could "take control of the situation", according to the same BBC article.
His doctors put him on aspirin and a colonoscopy every two years to make sure there are no cancerous or precancerous polyps in his colon.
Knowing Means You Can Do Something about It
Do You Know Who in Your Family Was Diagnosed, and at What Age?
You may not know if anyone has tested positive for Lynch syndrome in your family. But what you can do is document which blood relatives had cancer and how old they were when it was diagnosed. If you see a pattern, you might request a Lynch syndrome test like William did.
HealthScout’s Family Health History feature lets your family piece the puzzle together. As a group you almost certainly know more about your family health history than any one individual. Getting to the older generation is even more critical because when they die, their knowledge of the family goes with them.
Download HealthScout before National Family Health History Day this Thanksgiving so you can be ready to record everything your relatives know and share the results.
HealthScout does not calculate your risk. It gives you the answers you need to fill in the form.