What we can learn from Dave Coulier’s cancer diagnosis

Dave Coulier’s stage 3 Non-Hodgkin lymphoma diagnosis rocked fans of the “Full House” star. But something else he said has stuck in people’s minds, too.
Coulier, 65, told People magazine he was diagnosed in October after experiencing swelling in his lymph nodes due to an upper respiratory infection. “Three days later, my doctors called me back and they said, ‘We wish we had better news for you, but you have non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma and it’s called B cell and it’s very aggressive,'” he told the magazine.
He said he wanted to talk about his “personal battle” because “cancer has affected nearly all of us,” noting he lost his sister, niece and mother to cancer (his mother and sister to breast cancer, specifically). In the People interview, he revealed his older sister is also currently battling cancer.
“It is estimated that about one-third of individuals who have never had cancer have a first-degree relative, such as a parent or sibling, who was diagnosed with cancer,” says Beth Peshkin, a genetic counselor and professor of oncology at Georgetown University’s Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center. “This statistic is not surprising, given how common cancer is.”
Cancer can indeed run in families – though that doesn’t mean a specific gene is responsible. According to the American Cancer Society, just 5% to 10% of cancers are closely linked to gene mutations from a parent.
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Those concerned about their cancer risks should speak with medical professionals to figure out what testing protocols to follow; they may differ from the general population.
“Know your family history and bring this information to your doctor since it may inform age to start cancer screening, strategy for cancer screening and possibly genetic testing,” says Dr. Veda Giri, a medical oncologist and director of the Cancer Genetics and Prevention Program at Yale Cancer Center and Smilow Cancer Hospital.
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Coulier’s family history may have you thinking to yourself: Wait, how many members of my family have been diagnosed with cancer? And what kinds?
“Some cancers can run in families more commonly than others,” Giri explains. “Some families may have one type of cancer, such as families with breast cancer, colon cancer or prostate cancer. Other families can have various types of cancers that can be connected by inherited genetic mutations.”
Either way, “having multiple generations in a family diagnosed with the same type or types of cancer, especially if diagnosed at a young age, increases the likelihood of a hereditary disposition,” says Dr. Mohamed Abazeed, co-leader of the Lung Cancer Program in the Lurie Cancer Center at Northwestern University.
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Different cancers have different screening requirements. But a family history of cancer could change when you start that screening. Women with a family history of breast cancer should start getting tested “10 years prior to the youngest blood relative diagnosed with breast cancer, and this can include breast MRI in addition to mammograms,” Giri says.
For colon cancer, screening is recommended “10 years prior to a first-degree relative’s (parent, sibling, child) age at colon cancer diagnosis.”
A doctor may recommend genetic testing in discussing cancer risk, though what such tests show may not ultimately change how someone’s cancer is treated. Still, they may “otherwise to bring to the attention of their own physicians and to generally be aware of if they develop concerning symptoms not explained by other causes,” says Dr. Emil Lou, professor of medicine at the University of Minnesota.
Why else might cancer run in families beyond gene mutations? Environmental and lifestyle factors could play a role, such as smoking habits or obesity.
Research into inherited cancers will hopefully shed important insight in coming years. But for now, dig into your family history, ask questions and talk to your medical provider. It could save you and your family members.
Contributing: Brendan Morrow