Many people come in convinced that since they have breast cancer in the family that they also have the gene. The truth of the matter is that between 5-10 percent of breast cancer is genetically based. Now having said that, I am not telling you to ignore this fact or to be less vigilent in doing your self breast exams and yearly mammograms or ignoring your body. There is a blood test though that is BRCA 1 and 2 that can identify he link to genetic breast and ovarian cancer. This is great but in itself brings about a whole other set of questions and a genetic counselor is vital in the process to help you discuss and deal with whatever the outcomes are and what to do to follow. I often say that if we know something, then do we act on it and how. I am sure in the future that we will see more and more of these kinds of tests becoming available and even having said that we still don't rule out the outside influences beyond the genetic vulnerability. A full history including family history often leads to many clues to your own health history. I used to have my students (when I taught) make up a chart and go back at least two generations and look at health history. I know in my family alone that there is high blood pressure and many different cancers including lung and stomach. Does this scare me? No, but it is a caution light going on to be more pro-active and do my physicals and yearly exams and blood work that could give me a head start on finding anything that might crop up. I actually did have a maternal grandmother with breast cancer but I have since found out that I do not have the BRCA gene. Good news for my daughter but I still remind her that is important to take better care of yourself and watch for all the warnings just as you would your care. You don't wait till you are out of gas or oil to fix it, you do preventive maintenance and that is what I am saying to all. Be your own best friend and take care of yourself. You are important and taking care of you will help you take care of others. I hope that some special people in my life are reading this and will apply it to themselves. Make it a great day! S
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AuthorMy name is Sue Kilburn and I am a clinical nurse breast cancer educator at the Yolanda G. Barco Oncology Institute in Meadville, Pennsylvania. Archives
March 2015
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