Numerous factors will determine if youll getcancer.
Genetics, family history, lifestyle habits, and environment are all part of the equation.
Its, in a word, complicated.
Susana Ramírez / Stocksy
The best example of this isbreast cancer.
That mutation was on the BRCA1 gene.
We all have BRCA1 and BRCA2 genes, men and woman alike.
The test itself is fairly simple.
Your doctor will take a blood or saliva sample and send it to a lab.
The genes are then sequenced, and any specific mutations are identified.
For one thing,its really expensive.
Prices vary, but are typically somewhere around $3,000 to $4,000.
Whats really significant is if you have a male relative with breast cancer, says Dr. Boolbol.
Since male breast cancer is so rare, just one case is reason enough to suspect a genetic component.
The average womans risk of breast cancer increases as she gets olderthe median age of diagnosis is 62.
(At least to begin with.)
But you cannot make that decision until you have the information, she says.
Youre forgetting the other important option of close, intense screening.
The first thing we talk about is screening, for breast cancer, says Dr. Vogel.
This diligent screening process makes it possible to detect breast cancer much earlier, which greatly increases survival rates.
The other option if you find a BRCA mutation is opting for a prophylacticdouble mastectomy.
Removing the breasts drastically reduces breast cancer risk in women with a BRCA gene mutation.
It reduces it by over 90 percent, but the risk never gets to zero, says Dr. Boolbol.
Boolbol and Vogel are adamant that this should be a decision the woman makes without being pressured either way.
But many women are not interested in prophylactic surgery and that is not the answer for them.
Most breast cancers are detected on screening tests.
Thats not the case with ovarian cancer, says Dr. Boolbol.
Oftentimes,ovarian cancer is detected late, which makes it much harder to treat.
For this reason, doctors are more likely to encourage women to consider removing their ovaries.
Its also called ovariectomy.
For many, an oophorectomy is easier to handle since its not an outward, physical change like mastectomy.
There are different side effects, though, such asearly menopause.
Dr. Vogel says for many women the symptoms are mild.
And, naturally, it precludes conception.
The hope is that this will increase the chance of early detection, but its not a guarantee.
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