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© 2005 Oxford University Press
NEWS |
Risk Reduction Works for BRCA Mutation Carriers—With Heavy Costs
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Ten years of research suggests that surgery effectively prevents breast and ovarian cancer in women with BRCA1 and BRCA2 mutations. The risk reductions are substantial, but the approaches are drastic—prophylactic removal of the breasts or ovaries—leaving many women and their doctors looking for better ways to fend off the diseases.
BRCA1 and BRCA2 mutations were discovered in 1994 and 1995, respectively. "In 10 years, we've gone from not knowing whether or not any of our risk reduction strategies work to really having strong evidence that we can alter the natural history of these inherited cancer syndromes and reduce the risk of getting breast or ovarian cancer," said Noah D. Kauff, M.D., a gynecologist and geneticist at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center in New York. "We believe this will translate into a survival advantage, but the data are not yet available."
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However, the problems with prophylactic surgery have
Population at Risk
Other Options
The Unanswered Questions