A group of 11 cousins had their stomachs removed after genetic testing revealed that they had a genetic “defect” that made them likely to get a rare form of stomach cancer that had killed a number of their uncles, aunts and parents. In all of my reading of the data on this procedure, no where did I see any talk about whether they were likely to get another form of cancer even though they removed they’re stomach. They may have had this procedure without any long-term benefit which will be quite sad.

What really strikes me is the lack of talk about trying to suppress the expression of the flawed gene. This concept is beginning to gain a great deal of emphasis as more and more scientists come to the realization that this is the way to go. One of the biggest purveyors of this idea is Dr. Bruce Ames of the University of California, Berkeley. If you’re interested in his work, do a Google search on him and be ready to be fascinated.