You might wonder why some families are more cancer prone than others. In part, inheritance is involved in some of these cases. This is because, at birth, some offspring unknowingly inherit gene changes that can make them more susceptible to cancer. But this explains only a very small percent of new cancer cases, no more than 5 percent.

Others factors that may change your cancer risk include having stronger or weaker immune systems, variations in detoxifying enzymes or repair genes, or differences in hormone levels.

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