5. The Revised Bethesda Guidelines
When diagnosing patients for Lynch syndrome, physicians follow a method known as, “the revised Bethesda guidelines.” These criteria assist doctors in their diagnosis and help them to understand their risk profile for developing other life-threatening cancers in the future. The guidelines are as follows;
• The development of endometrial or colorectal cancer in people under the age of 50-years old.
• Signs of high-level microsatellite instability (MSI-H,) or mismatch repair deficiency (MMR-D,) found during biopsy of tumor tissue.
• Developing colorectal cancer along with another form of cancer at the same time.
• One or more first-degree relatives, (children, parents, or siblings,) with colorectal cancer and one other LS-related cancer.
• One or more second-degree relatives, (grandparents, aunts, uncles, nephews, and nieces,) with colorectal cancer and one or more LS-related cancer.
• Detection and diagnosis of any other form of LS-related cancer.
When visiting your physician, they will ask you a series of questions about your medical history relating to cancer, as well as order a battery of tests that follow the guidelines as mentioned above.