Kudo's to Angelina Jolie for bringing attention to genetic testing for cancer! Did you know the BRCA1 & BRCA2 are also linked to pancreatic cancer for both men & women? I'll be going through this testing at Vanderbilt next week.
KNOWLEDGE IS POWER:
A woman’s lifetime risk of developing breast and/or ovarian cancer is greatly increased if she inherits a harmful mutation in BRCA1 or BRCA2. Such a woman has an increased risk of developing breast and/or ovarian cancer at an early age (before menopause) and often has multiple, close family members who have been diagnosed with these diseases. Harmful BRCA1 mutations may also increase a woman’s risk of developing cervical, uterine, pancreatic, and colon cancer (1, 2). Harmful BRCA2 mutations may additionally increase the risk of pancreatic cancer, stomach cancer, gallbladder and bile duct cancer, and melanoma (3).
Men with harmful BRCA1 mutations also have an increased risk of breast cancer and, possibly, of pancreatic cancer, testicular cancer, and early-onset prostate cancer. However, male breast cancer, pancreatic cancer, and prostate cancer appear to be more strongly associated with BRCA2 gene mutations (2–4).
Kadouri L, Hubert A, Rotenberg Y, et al. Cancer risks in carriers of the BRCA1/2 Ashkenazi founder mutations. Journal of Medical Genetics 2007; 44(7):467–471.
Thompson D, Easton DF, the Breast Cancer Linkage Consortium. Cancer incidence in BRCA1 mutation carriers. Journal of the National Cancer Institute 2002; 94(18):1358–1365.
The Breast Cancer Linkage Consortium. Cancer risks in BRCA2 mutation carriers. Journal of the National Cancer Institute 1999; 91(15):1310–1316.
PDQ® Cancer Information Summary. National Cancer Institute; Bethesda, MD. Genetics of Breast and Ovarian Cancer (PDQ®) - Health Professional. Date last modified 04/24/2009. Available at: http://www.cancer.gov/
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