Gene cancer tests 'need review'

Decisions over who to test for a high-risk breast cancer gene should not be made solely on the basis of family history, US research suggests. Predictions as to whether a woman may develop hereditary breast cancer are often reached by counting the number of female relatives with the disease. But this excludes women who do not have many female relatives in whom the disease could have manifested itself. The Journal of American Medicine study said testing criteria needed reviewing. The study looked at 306 women who had breast cancer and, crucially, no close female relatives with the disease. BRCA genes were found in 13.7% of those with few close female relatives in the first place, compared with 5.2% in those with more than two. The genes BRCA1 and BRCA2 account for about 10% of inherited breast cancers, and they are also associated with an increased risk of ovarian cancer.... "BBC.NEWS.CO.UK":[ http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/6764911.stm]

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