Dr. Henry Lynch dies at 91
Dr. Henry T. Lynch, 91, known as "the father of hereditary cancer detection and prevention," died on Sunday. Lynch recognized genetic causes of cancer. At the time, medical orthodoxy said cancer was not an inherited disease.
Lynch was the first in the world to discover the familial breast-ovarian cancer syndrome, a discovery that led to the identification of BRCA mutations. The geneticist described Lynch syndrome in the early 1960s.
Lynch grew up in New York and joined the U.S. Navy at 16, using an older cousin's ID. Lynch was a gunner on a Marine ship during World War II until discharged in 1946. After a boxing career, Lynch returned to school to become a medical graduate.
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