Aggregated News
Nine of 10 women do not need and should not receive genetic testing to see if they are at risk for breast or ovarian cancer, an influential panel of health experts announced Monday.
The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) reaffirmed its previous recommendation from 2005 that only a limited number of women with a family history of breast cancer be tested for mutations in the BRCA1 and BRCA2 genes that can increase their cancer risk.
Even then, these women should discuss the test with both their family doctor and a genetic counselor before proceeding with the BRCA genetic test, the panel said.
"Not all people who have positive family histories should be tested. It's not at all simple or straightforward," said Dr. Virginia Moyer, the task force's chair.
Interest among women in genetic testing for breast cancer has greatly increased, partially due to Hollywood film star Angelina Jolie's announcement in May that she underwent a double mastectomy because she carried the BRCA1 mutation.
A Harris Interactive/HealthDay poll conducted a few months after Jolie's announcement found as many as 6...
The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) reaffirmed its previous recommendation from 2005 that only a limited number of women with a family history of breast cancer be tested for mutations in the BRCA1 and BRCA2 genes that can increase their cancer risk.
Even then, these women should discuss the test with both their family doctor and a genetic counselor before proceeding with the BRCA genetic test, the panel said.
"Not all people who have positive family histories should be tested. It's not at all simple or straightforward," said Dr. Virginia Moyer, the task force's chair.
Interest among women in genetic testing for breast cancer has greatly increased, partially due to Hollywood film star Angelina Jolie's announcement in May that she underwent a double mastectomy because she carried the BRCA1 mutation.
A Harris Interactive/HealthDay poll conducted a few months after Jolie's announcement found as many as 6...