Key Points:
- Researchers have discovered a link between a chemotherapy drug and increased inheritance of disease in future generations.
- Adolescent patients who receive ifosfamide may increase the chance of passing the disease off to their children and grandchildren.
- Researchers emphasize the findings should not keep cancer patients from undergoing chemotherapy treatment.
Washington State University-led research showed a correlation between a common chemotherapy drug and its ability to pass the disease along to children and grandchildren of adolescent cancer survivors.
The study, published in iScience, found that male rats who received the drug ifosfamide during adolescence had offspring and grand-offspring with increased chances of cancer. This is one of the first-known studies that shows that susceptibility can be passed down to later generations, although research has shown a link to cancer treatments and an increase in patients developing disease later in life.
For the study, the researchers exposed a set of young male rats to ifosfamide for 3 days. Those rats were later bred with female rats who had not been exposed to the drug. The resulting offspring were bred again with another set of unexposed rats.
Researchers found both the first-generation offspring, as well as the second-generation offspring who had no direct exposure to the drug, had a greater incidence of disease. The associated problems included greater incidence of kidney and testis diseases, as well as delayed onset of puberty and abnormally low anxiety, indicating a lowered ability to assess risk.
The researchers also found epigenetic changes in the two generations. A better knowledge of chemotherapy’s epigenetic shifts could help inform patients of their likelihood of developing certain diseases, creating the possibility of earlier prevention and treatment strategies.
“We could potentially determine if a person’s exposure had these epigenetic shifts that could direct what diseases they’re going to develop, and what they’re going to potentially pass on to their grandchildren,” said Michael Skinner, WSU biologist and corresponding author on the study. “We could use epigenetics to help diagnose whether they're going to have a susceptibility to disease.”
Skinner emphasized that the findings should not dissuade cancer patients from undertaking chemotherapy since it can be a very effective treatment against cancerous cells. Instead of forgoing chemotherapy, researchers recommend that cancer patients who plan to have children later take precautions, including the use of cryopreservation to freeze sperm or ova before having chemotherapy.
Skinner and colleagues are currently working on a human study to learn more about the effects chemotherapy exposure has on fertility and disease susceptibility later in life.