Modern medicine already uses screening to catch problems early. Newborns are tested for serious genetic conditions, adults have their blood pressure and cholesterol checked, and women have Pap smears to detect cervical cancer. These programs work because they identify risks before symptoms appear, when treatment is most effective. Now, scientists…
Cancer treatment is changing around the world because doctors are beginning to look beyond what they can see under a microscope. They are now looking deep inside the DNA of cancer cells to understand what truly drives the disease. In India, an important step in this direction has been taken…
A large new study published in BMC Cancer has uncovered something important for how we think about inherited breast cancer risk in India: most of the genetic risks would be missed if doctors only test for the famous BRCA genes. When people hear about genetic testing for breast cancer, they…
Why do some people live to 100 while others die decades earlier? Most of us have heard the same explanation for years: eat well, exercise, avoid smoking, get lucky. Lifestyle, environment, and chance were thought to do most of the work. A new study led by molecular biologist Uri Alon…
For many people with rare or unexplained conditions, getting a clear diagnosis can take years. This long journey—often called the diagnostic odyssey—may involve multiple doctor visits, repeated tests, and lingering uncertainty. Advances in genetic testing are changing this, and whole genome sequencing (WGS) is emerging as one of the most…
Most of us grow up thinking of genetic conditions as something rare—something that happens “in other families” or only when there is a known history of disease. The truth is more surprising: many healthy people unknowingly carry genetic changes that can be passed on to their children. This is where…
The NHS in England has launched a first-of-its-kind national genetics programme to help people at high inherited risk of cancer receive ongoing checks, tests and personalised care. This new initiative centres on the NHS National Inherited Cancer Predisposition Register, a database of people whose genes put them at higher risk…
Cardiac genetic testing is rapidly emerging as one of the most important tools in modern heart health care—especially for people with a family history of heart disease or unexplained cardiac problems. At its core, this type of testing looks at your DNA to identify specific gene changes that can increase…
Genetic testing has quickly moved from being something only used in hospitals for rare diseases to something many people now consider as part of routine health planning. You may have heard friends talk about “getting their DNA tested” or seen news about genetics helping doctors detect disease earlier or choose…
Imagine doing everything “right.” You eat reasonably well, you stay active, you don’t smoke. And yet, your cholesterol stays stubbornly high—sometimes very high. For many people, this isn’t about willpower or lifestyle. It’s about genetics. One of the most common inherited conditions affecting cholesterol is familial hypercholesterolemia (FH). It causes…
