According to the researchers from Huntsman Cancer Institute (HCI) at The University of Utah, a British married couple may be the ancestor of hundreds of people alive today who are at risk for a hereditary form of colon cancer.

The researchers made the discovery after they have studied two large families, one in Utah and one in New York, that both carry a specific genetic mutation responsible for increased risk of colorectal cancer.

According to Deborah Neklason, Ph.D., a University of Utah research assistant professor and leader of the study, the mutation causes a condition called attenuated familial adenomatous polyposis (AFAP). Without proper clinical care, people with the AFAP mutation have a greater than 2 in 3 risk of colon cancer by age 80, compared to about 1 in 24 for the general population. Yet the cancer can be prevented with proper screening and care.

They managed to trace back the mutation and discovered that the two families share common ancestors, a couple who came to America from England in the 1630s, about the time of the Pilgrims.

“The fact that this mutation can be traced so far back in time suggests that it could be carried by many more families in the United States than is currently known,” says Deborah Neklason. “In fact, this founder mutation might be related to many colon cancer cases in the United States.”

However, she explains, clinical recognition of AFAP can be difficult because colon cancer develops on average in a person’s 50s and the majority of sporadic, or non-hereditary, colon cancers occur after the age of 50.

“People need to talk with their family, learn their family cancer history, and share this information with their doctors. Doctors need to be aware of AFAP, recognize people at risk, and know the screening and treatment protocols that can prevent colon cancer from developing,” Neklason says.