The father-daughter familial ties of George Romig and Tanya Hughes are cause for concern.
“There’s the increased risk of colorectal cancer and endometrial and ovarian cancer,” Hughes said.
In his mid 40’s, Romig, now 64, was diagnosed with colorectal cancer and discovered he had Lynch Syndrome.
“I didn’t know what it was. I didn’t know where it came from, and until they you know, then we had our meetings, and they told us it was like inherited from your parents,” he said.
Lynch Syndrome is caused by genetic mutations in DNA mismatch repair genes. The mostly hereditary disorder increases the chances of certain cancers, including colorectal cancer.
38-year-old Tanya discovered she had Lynch Syndrome just before turning 30.
“Almost like a cloud of doom, and I eventually turned it into, well, this is a good thing, like I can take action and take the steps to get the testing done and meet with my doctors every year to see what else I need to do,” she said.
“We’ve seen a rise in the number of young people with cancer, most commonly left-sided colon cancer, and unfortunately, a lot of times, is already metastasized to other organs at the time of presentation,” said LVHN oncologist Dr. Maged Khalil.
He says colon cancer screenings now need to start at age 45. Warning signs are blood in the stool, consistent stomach pains, and anemia, to name a few.
“The cure rate is, is great, is in the 90% time,” Dr. Khalil said on catching it early.
Why Hughes and Romig stress getting screened can be cause for a family celebration.
“I would, if you have anything doesn’t look right down there, I would surely go to the doctor as soon as possible and get it checked out,” Romig said.
