Lynch Syndrome

Lynch syndrome, also known as hereditary nonpolyposis colorectal cancer (HNPCC), is an inherited disorder that significantly increases the risk of various cancers, particularly colorectal cancer. It also causes cancers to happen at an earlier age than they might otherwise develop.

Symptoms

The symptoms of Lynch syndrome are usually symptoms of the cancers it causes. 

That means that unless you know someone in your family has Lynch syndrome and you get genetic testing, you might not know you have it until you get cancer.

Treatments

There's no cure for Lynch syndrome, so it's important to get regular cancer screenings. Catching cancer early can help increase the success of treatment. 

Risk Factors

Lynch syndrome is hereditary, which means it's caused by genes passed from a parent to their child. If one parent has the genes that cause Lynch syndrome, each of their children will have a 50 percent chance of having Lynch syndrome.