Should You be Tested for the BRCA Breast Cancer

June 23, 2021

4 min read

Around 281,550 new invasive breast cancer cases are expected to be diagnosed in 2021 in women in the United States as well as over 49,000 new non-invasive (in situ) cases of breast cancer, according to BreastCancer.org. Around 5% to 10% of breast cancers are associated with gene mutations inherited from a parent. BRCA1 and BRCA2 gene mutations are the most common, and they are serious mutations.

Women with the BRCA1 mutation, on average, have up to a 72% lifetime risk of experiencing breast cancer development. The risk is 69% for women with the BRCA2 mutation.

Women who have received a diagnosis of these mutations in some cases decide to undergo preventive surgery for removing their ovaries and/or breasts before they end up with cancer.

Should You Test for the BRCA Breast Cancer Gene?

You might be wondering if you should have a BRCA mutation test. The answer is no for most women. If there's no history of breast or ovarian cancer in your family, chances are good you don't carry a mutated BRCA gene.

However, you'll want to think about getting tested if your family tree is showing any of these signs:

Any “first-degree” family member (mother or sister) who receives a breast cancer diagnosis, particularly before they're 50 years old
Any history of male breast cancer in the family
Multiple breast cancers on one side of the family, particularly before reaching 50 years old
Any history of ovarian cancer in the family

It is ALWAYS a wise choice to discuss your breast cancer risks with your doctor.

Even if an irregular gene associated with a higher risk of breast cancer is present in your family, this doesn't mean each individual in the family will inherit it. It's more likely that a person who has already had ovarian or breast cancer will have the mutation.

Once you confirm a family member with cancer does have an irregular gene, then there's a higher likelihood the cancers in your family are due to this mutated gene. Members of the family who then test positive will want to consider themselves at a higher risk of developing ovarian, breast, and/or other forms of cancer. Those testing negative can consider their risk as being similar to that of individuals in the general population.

Genetic test results are most significant when the process starts with a member of the family who's already received an ovarian cancer or breast cancer diagnosis. This might be you or it might be your:

Sister
Mother
Aunt
Another family member

If you're thinking about having a test done, it's extremely crucial you first meet with a genetic counselor. The genetic counselor can help you determine if there's an inherited pattern of breast cancer cases in your family history as well as possibly ovarian or other forms of cancer. If there is, an irregular PALB2, BRCA1, or BRCA2 gene might be the cause of cancer running in your family. You'll need to undergo genetic testing to know for sure.

Foundations and Societies

Komen.org: The mission of this organization is to save lives by investing in breakthrough research and meeting the crucial requirements of communities to prevent and cure breast cancer.
National Breast Cancer Foundation, Inc.: This organization offers help and inspires hope to people impacted by breast cancer through education, early detection, and support services.
Breast Cancer Research Foundation: The Breast Cancer Research Foundation's mission is to prevent and cure breast cancer through more advanced and innovative promising research.

Latest Insights on Breast Cancer

Predicting Embryo Breast Cancer. Nature Scientific Reports published a study in which researchers explain how an inexpensive genomic analysis could predict the health risk of a person for a range of conditions like heart disease, breast cancer, diabetes, and more.
Breast Cancer Research Advances. NCI-funded researchers work to improve our knowledge and understanding of how to detect, prevent and treat breast cancer. They're also searching for how to tackle disparities and enhance the quality of life in survivors of breast cancer.
New Discovery in the Treatment of Breast Cancer. Researchers identified new proof about androgens' positive role in treatment for breast cancer with instant implications for women experiencing estrogen receptor-driven metastatic disease.

If a member of the family with ovarian or breast cancer receives a negative test for a known irregular gene associated with the risk of breast cancer, it's then possible a strong cancer pattern in your family is being caused by some other inherited gene not yet identified by researchers. When you base it on family history alone, you and your family members should still consider your ovarian and/or breast cancer risk to be greater than that of the general population.

In some cases, there are no living family members with cancer who could undergo genetic testing. A genetic counselor could help you identify which family member is the best individual to test and why.

Do You Have the Breast Cancer Gene?

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