Genetic Variants Associated with Colorectal Adenoma Susceptibility

Background Common low-penetrance genetic variants have been consistently associated with colorec- tal cancer risk. Aim To determine if these genetic variants are associated also with adenoma susceptibility and may improve selection of patients with increased risk for advanced adenomas and/or multi- plicity ( 3 adenomas). Methods We selected 1,326 patients with increased risk for advanced adenomas and/or multiplicity and 1,252 controls with normal colonoscopy from population-based colorectal cancer screening programs. We conducted a case-control association study analyzing 30 colorec- tal cancer susceptibility variants in order to investigate the contribution of these variants to the development of subsequent advanced neoplasia and/or multiplicity. Results We found that 14 of the analyzed genetic variants showed a statistically significant associa- tion with advanced adenomas and/or multiplicity: the probability of developing these lesions increased with the number of risk alleles reaching a 2.3-fold risk increment in individuals with 17 risk alleles. Conclusions Nearly half of the genetic variants associated with colorectal cancer risk are also related to advanced adenoma and/or multiplicity predisposition. Assessing the number of risk alleles in individuals within colorectal cancer screening programs may help to identify better a sub- group with increased risk for advanced neoplasia and/or multiplicity in the general population