An international team of geneticists has developed a new way of identifying the risk possibility of a woman having the gene mutation that puts her at risk for breast or ovarian cancer.
In the largest study to date, involving nearly 800 women, researchers found that risk factor analysis may save lives by identifying the women at risk for BRCA1 mutation, which is known to cause these cancers. Five to 10 percent of female breast cancer cases are due to this inherited mutated gene, the study shows.
“What this study does is give a physician, in a succinct form, the summary to work with the patient to determine if she is appropriate for genetic testing,” says Donna Shattuck-Eitens, project director at Myriad Genetics Inc. in Salt Lake City and coordinator of the study. “This helps doctors identify women susceptible to breast and ovarian cancer so they can take some precautions.”
Women with a mutated gene are at a lifetime risk of breast cancer that is more than eight times greater than the rest of the population. Family history, ethnicity and age of onset of the disease are also significant factors in isolating the gene, according to the study, which found that U.S. Jewish women of Ashkenazi descent are at high risk.
