Scientists at the Research Institute of the McGill University Health Centre have discovered three genetic mutations that are likely to cause a recurrent type of molar pregnancy.

In Quebec, molar pregnancy occurs in about one in every 600 pregnancies,  when instead of a fetus growing inside the uterus, a mole grows inside, and in up to 15 per cent of cases, that mole turns malignant and can cause cancer.

The discovery paves the way for better genetic screeninge to help women at risk of recurrent molar pregnancy, says Rima Slim, a geneticist at the MUHC’s research institute and lead researcher of a study just published in the American Journal of Human Genetics.

Read more: Montreal Gazette  /  MUHC Newsroom