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Wafaa M Rashed: Polygenic Risk Score for Cancer in African Population

Wafaa Rashed/LinkedIn

Aug 3, 2025, 19:18

Wafaa M Rashed: Polygenic Risk Score for Cancer in African Population

Wafaa M Rashed, Chair and founder of PAPERI at Pan- African PGS Education and Research Initiative, shared a post on LinkedIn:

“Thrilled to Announce Our Publication!

I’m incredibly proud to share that after over a year of dedication, revisions, and collaboration, our paper has officially been published in the Annals of Human Genetics (Volume 89, Issue 4) – as part of a Special Issue on Genetics and Genomics in Health and Disease: A Focus on African Populations.

Title: Polygenic Risk Score for Cancer in African Population: A Systematic Review

Co-authored with my brilliant colleague, Olagunju Abdulrahmon A. from Nigeria.

Submitted: Feb 2024 | Accepted and published: July 2025 | Published: Aug 2025

Abstract Snapshot:

This systematic review evaluated 33 studies using polygenic risk scores (PRS) in African ancestry populations with cancer. We identified key gaps in PRS clinical utility, particularly compared to European cohorts, and emphasized the urgent need for large-scale, population-specific GWAS to enhance precision medicine for African populations.

Key Findings:

Prostate and breast cancers were the most studied.
Ancestry-specific PRS was the most common method.
Limited clinical utility was observed across cancer types.
Calls for more inclusive, diverse, and large-scale genomic studies in Africa.

This work highlights both the progress and disparity in the use of PRS in African genomics, and we hope it contributes meaningfully to the conversation on equity in precision medicine.

Huge thanks to my co-author.”

Title: Polygenic Risk Score for Cancer in African Population: A Systematic Review

Journal: Annals of Human Genetics

Authors: Wafaa M. Rashed, Olagunju Abdulrahmon A.

Read the full article.

Wafaa M Rashed