Over the last 10 years 25 different hereditary cancer syndromes have been identified and attributed to specific germline mutations in various inherited cancer genes. Though hereditary cancer syndromes are rare, their investigation has begun to provide unprecedented insights into the molecular origin and pathogenesis of various forms of cancer [3]. With the cloning of cancer-predisposing genes i...

Point mutations, deletions, and recombinations of the RET proto-onco gene are associated with several inherited human diseases of neural crest-derived cells: Hirschsprung's disease, familial medullary thyroid carcinoma, and the multiple endocrine neoplasia (MEN) syndromes, types 2A and 2B. RET expression is restricted to normal and malignant cells of neural crest origin, such as human neuroblas...

Objective. Until recently, advanced medullary thyroid cancer (MTC) had few treatment options except surgery. The mTOR inhibitor everolimus has shown encouraging results in neuroendocrine tumors. As part of a prospective phase II study, we analyzed the safety and efficacy of everolimus in advanced MTC. Methods. Seven patients with per RECIST 1.1 documented advanced MTC were included and received...

Thyroid cancer is the most common endocrine neoplasia. The medullary thyroid carcinoma (MTC) is one of the most aggressive forms of thyroid malignancy,accounting for up to 10% of all types of this disease. The mode of inheritance of MTC is autosomal dominantly and gain of function mutations in the RET proto-oncogene are well known to contribute to its development. MTC occurs as hereditary (25%)...

BACKGROUND Multiple endocrine neoplasia (MEN) type 2 is an autosomal dominant cancer syndrome associated with the development of thyroid cancer and tumors or hyperplasia in other endocrine organs. It is caused by mutations in the RET gene and can be phenotypically classified into MEN types 2A and 2B. MEN2B is often sporadic resulting from a spontaneous mutation, M981T. A positive paternal germl...

Mutations in the VHL, RET, SDHB, and SDHD genes are responsible for von Hippel-Lindau (VHL) disease, multiple endocrine neoplasia type 2 (MEN2), and familial paraganglioma, respectively. However, genotype-phenotype correlation data are lacking in Southeast Asia. A retrospective medical chart review was performed on patients referred to the genetics service. We found 35 patients diagnosed with c...

The RET proto-oncogene encodes a receptor tyrosine kinase whose dysfunction plays a crucial role in the development of several neural crest disorders. Distinct activating RET mutations cause Multiple Endocrine Neoplasia type 2A (MEN2A), type 2B (MEN2B) and Familial Medullary Thyroid Carcinoma (FMTC). Despite clear correlations between the mutations found in these cancer syndromes and their phen...

The susceptibility gene for hereditary Medullary Thyroid Carcinoma (MTC) is the RET proto-oncogene. The aim of this study was to evaluate the prevalence of common germline RET mutations in exons 10 and 11 among Iranian MTC patients. Fifty-seven non-related MTC patients were examined in this study (Females: Males =1.2:1.0, Mean age = 40.0 +/- 11.5 years) and the existence of mutations was assess...