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I always thought breast cancer was hereditary

September 02, 2008

breast cancer, family history, women, ovarian cancer, family, triage, mutation, ovarian, chicago, genetic, today, risk, breast, disease, marketing

But that's a myth, according to a report in the Chicago Tribune today.

Only 5 to 10 percent of breast and ovarian cancers are because someone else in your family had the disease. Which means that genetic testing isn't necessarily for everyone.

MYTH. Any woman who wants to know her risk of developing breast and ovarian cancer should get a genetic test.

FACT. Genetic testing is only valuable for women who are at risk for hereditary breast cancer and is generally not recommended for women with no personal or family history of these conditions. In fact, most women who develop breast or ovarian cancer do not have a gene mutation.

Did you know this?

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Be skeptical of all the genetic tests out there, she says. Some of it is just good marketing.

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CarolineMFR said:
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Cancer is not hereditary except in rare circumstances. I have had cancer twice now. No one else in my family has had cancer other than my grandfathers who both got it in old age....

Cancer is not hereditary except in rare circumstances. I have had cancer twice now. No one else in my family has had cancer other than my grandfathers who both got it in old age. I had cancer first as a teenager. A genetic test can only tell you if you are at a higher risk of developing a specific cancer not that you will get it.

view less October 10, 2008