Before 1998, the outlook for families with suspected inherited stomach cancer was grim. One in two were likely to die from the disease at a young age, with little that could be done to mitigate that risk. The challenges for healthcare providers were also daunting. Surveillance was largely impractical and gastroenterologists were not confident that they could detect the cancer early enough to ensure survival.

In Aotearoa, it is exemplified by the McLeod whānau (Ngāi Te Rangi, Ngāti Ranginui) from Tauranga Moana who lost 37 people to stomach cancer between the 1950s and 1998 at a young age. In 1995, the McLeod whānau formed a research partnership with the University of Otago, supported by clinicians at Tauranga Hospital to identify the genetic cause of the cancer, with the overall goal of developing genetic testing, surveillance protocols and medical interventions to manage the cancer risk in this whānau and, subsequently, other stomach cancer families around the world.

In this lecture, Parry and Karyn will discuss how the research identified the genetic cause of the stomach cancer syndrome and developed the means to dramatically decrease the mortality in affected families.

Professor Parry Guilford is a Principal Investigator in the Cancer Genetics Laboratory, University of Otago. His current research interests include the genetics of inherited and sporadic cancers, in particular stomach cancer. He has a longstanding collaboration with whānau affected by the inherited cancer syndrome Hereditary Diffuse Gastric Cancer, leading to a strong interest in the equitable delivery of genomics-based healthcare solutions.

Professor Karyn Paringatai is a lecturer in Te Tumu – School of Māori, Pacific & Indigenous Studies at Ōtākou Whakaihu Waka – University of Otago, where she teaches in the areas of Māori language, Māori cultural knowledge and Māori performing arts. Her research interests are in areas that intersect at various points that draw on mātauranga Māori, primarily Māori experiences of genetically inherited disorders, urban migration and identity development, and Indigenous teaching pedagogies.