Test predicts cancer 13 years into the future

By Around the Web

(New Zealand Herald) A test that can predict with 100 per cent accuracy whether someone will develop cancer up to 13 years in the future has been devised by scientists.

Harvard and Northwestern University discovered that tiny but significant changes took place in the body more than a decade before cancer was diagnosed. Protective caps on the ends of chromosomes, which prevent DNA damage, had significantly more wear and tear in those who went on to develop cancer. In fact, they looked like they belonged to a person who was 15 years older.

The caps, known as telomeres, were much shorter than they should have been and continued to get shorter until around four years before the cancer developed, when they suddenly stopped shrinking.

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