Checking to see if genetic risk scores work well

We get gene changes we get from our parents. Most of them do not cause any problems. But some might cause a disease. Others may only cause a tiny change. Some diseases are simple. One gene change can cause the disease. Sickle cell is an example. But other diseases are not simple. Like heart disease. Each gene change may play a small part. These still do not add up to the disease. But they might increase our risk for getting the disease. Other things, like your diet or if you work out also factor in. Scientists think that if we have more gene changes in a disease pathway, we are at higher risk. Researchers at Vanderbilt University Medical Center will use BioVU to study this. They will look for gene changes linked to different diseases. Heart disease, stroke, and type 2 diabetes are some of the diseases they will study. They will try to figure out which groups of gene changes increase our risk for each disease. They will also look for the gene changes that most put us at risk. They will check how many patients in BioVU are at high risk for each disease. The goal is to figure out if knowing our gene changes can help us reduce our risk. We may be able to do something to prevent the disease. If you know you are at high risk for lung cancer, you might think twice before smoking. Scientists may be able to create new treatments to reduce our risk. Or to better manage the disease if we get it. Their results could help us live longer, healthier lives.