Sometimes there are also abnormalities of the heart, kidneys or limbs. There is a high rate of cancer, especially leukemia, among these patients. There is no treatment, and death occurs by age 4 years. Bloom syndrome includes poor growth, immune system deficiency and a high rate of cancer. Affected individuals usually die of cancer before the age of 30 years.
Intelligence is normal.
Different genes cause each of these diseases, but the way they are inherited is the same. The chances are the same for each pregnancy, no matter how many children the couple has, and are also the same for boys and girls. Carriers are not themselves affected by the disease. If only one parent is a found to be carrier of a disease gene, or if neither parent is found to be a carrier, their child is at extremely low risk for inheriting that disease. This diagram shows the children that can be born to parents who are carriers of the same disease gene.