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News
Colorectal cancer isn't just a disease for older adults — and a new risk tool may help catch it earlier. A prospective study found that an integrated inherited risk measure (GenProbCRC) identified young adults under 50 with up to 28 times the colorectal cancer risk compared to low-risk peers. Crucially, it flagged high-risk individuals who would have been missed by family history or genetic testing alone.
Colorectal cancer (CRC) rates are rising among adults under 50, and a new study suggests a smarter way to identify who's most at risk — before they ever get a diagnosis. Researchers tested an integrated inherited risk measure called GenProbCRC across two large cohorts (UK Biobank and a US health system biobank), tracking over 100,000 adults under 50 who were CRC-free at enrollment.
The tool combines a polygenic risk score, family history, and Lynch syndrome gene variants to sort individuals into four risk tiers. The results were striking: those in the very high-risk group were more than 28 times more likely to develop early-onset CRC than those in the low-risk group. Even more telling, high- and very high-risk individuals made up just ~21% of the population but accounted for 61% of early-onset CRC cases.
By the Numbers:
Why it matters: Early-onset CRC is notoriously hard to catch because standard screening typically starts at 45–50. A validated inherited risk tool like GenProbCRC could enable targeted, earlier screening for younger adults who fall through the cracks of traditional family history and genetic testing approaches.
