Relatives of boys with sexual birth defects not at testicular germ cell cancer risk

While boys with sexual birth defects are at risk for developing testicular germ cell cancer, their relatives remain unaffected, a new study has revealed.

Although hypospadias, the birth defect that involves an abnormally-placed urinary opening, and cryptorchidism, the lack of descension of one or both testes in the scrotal sac, are associated with a risk of developing testicular germ cell cancer, it was unclear whether all three were inheritable.

During the study, researcher Dr Tine H. Schnack, of the Department of Epidemiology Research, Statens Serum Institute, in Copenhagen, and colleagues identified over 2 million men born since 1953.

They found that men with a personal history of cryptorchidism or hypospadias had an increased relative risk of developing testicular germ cell cancer, but their relatives did not.

The authors write that "...a family history of hypospadias or cryptorchidism was not associated with a general increase in the risk of developing [testicular germ cell cancer].

Thus, our data do not support the hypothesis of shared inheritability of the disorders described under testicular dysgenesis syndrome."