Where Genetic Testing Fits in a Breast Health Routine
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Exercise, balanced meals, and regular medical checkups are often part of maintaining good health. For those with a family history of breast cancer, learning about genetics and understanding inherited risk can be an important part of that same commitment to health and a valuable topic to discuss with a healthcare provider.
Hereditary testing looks at inherited variants associated with cancer risk. It can provide information about susceptibility before a diagnosis, helping people and their healthcare providers discuss screening and prevention.
An estimated 5% to 10% of breast cancers are associated with inherited harmful variants, including changes in genes such as BRCA1, BRCA2, and PALB2. These variants can influence susceptibility long before symptoms appear, and a healthy lifestyle cannot establish whether someone carries one.
For Breast Cancer Awareness Month, jscreen is explaining the role of inherited risk in breast health. Learning about that risk can help people and their healthcare providers plan screening and prevention.
While a mammogram looks for signs of breast cancer, hereditary genetic testing looks for inherited changes that may increase someone's chance of developing cancer in the future.
Family medical history may provide some indication that inherited risk deserves closer examination. Multiple relatives diagnosed with breast or ovarian cancer, especially at younger ages, can be relevant. Certain pancreatic and prostate cancer diagnoses may also contribute to that assessment.
Both sides of the family matter. Men can carry and pass on cancer-related variants, and cancers other than breast cancer may be relevant to inherited risk.
A healthcare professional can help assess which information is available and whether genetic counseling or testing would be useful.
The national nonprofit jscreen provides access to hereditary cancer testing through an at-home saliva collection program. Its panel examines 63 genes associated with breast cancer and other hereditary cancer syndromes. Participants receive clinically interpreted findings and can consult a certified genetic counselor, who can explain what the results may mean for future screening and conversations with their healthcare provider.
A harmful variant does not mean cancer is certain to develop, and a negative result does not eliminate breast cancer risk. A genetic counselor can help put either finding in context.
Results can help inform a conversation about monitoring or preventive options. They do not replace breast imaging or other recommended care.
A useful next step can be to bring family history into the same appointment where everyday habits and routine screening are discussed.
Alongside the usual discussions about diet and exercise, someone reviewing their health this October can ask whether their personal or family history should change how their breast cancer risk is assessed.
A healthcare provider can help decide whether hereditary testing is appropriate and how the findings would fit into ongoing care.
