Confronting your personal cancer risk can be confusing and frustrating. If you are a cancer pre-vivor trying to choose the best risk-management option, sometimes it helps to speak with other women who have faced these choices. Learn more about talking with other high-risk women in our website’s FORCE Community section or visit the following sections of the FORCE website to find more support resources specifically for pre-vivors: Read the rest of this entry »
Joining FORCEs, the quarterly FORCE newsletter, has articles on breast and ovarian cancer risk management. Volume 1, Issue 1–Summer 2005 has an article on MRI for breast cancer screening, and an article on proteomics for ovarian cancer detection.
Volume 1, Issue 2 has an article on breast reconstruction after mastectomy
The decision to undergo prophylactic removal of the ovaries and tubes to lower the risk for cancer is a difficult and personal one.
Women who undergo oophorectomy prior to natural menopause will experience menopause from the surgery. Menopausal symptoms and the experience varies from woman to woman. Further, some of the consequences of menopause are more serious than others. Some women find hormone supplementation alleviates their menopausal symptoms. However, research on hormone replacement is inconclusive regarding the benefits and risks to menopausal women. Because much of the research has been conducted on women who experienced natural menopause, the applicability to women experiencing early surgical menopause is uncertain. It is important for each woman to discuss menopausal symptoms with their doctor and to weigh the potential benefits and relief from hormone replacement vs. their individual risks from hormone replacement or other menopausal treatments. Read the rest of this entry »
Oophorectomy is the removal of the ovaries to treat or prevent ovarian cancer or other ovarian abnormalities. “Prophylactic oophorectomy” refers to the removal of healthy ovaries in women who have an elevated risk for ovarian cancer. Women with elevated hereditary risk for ovarian cancer also have an elevated risk for fallopian tube cancer. For this reason, when their ovaries are removed prophylactically, the fallopian tubes must also be removed. “Bilateral salpingo-oophorectomy” (BSO) refers to the surgical removal of both ovaries and both tubes. In women at substantially increased risk for ovarian cancer, bilateral prophylactic oophorectomy has been shown to be a highly effective tool to lower the risk for both ovarian cancer and breast cancer. Although effective, some consider oophorectomy a drastic way to lower cancer risk. After prophylactic oophorectomy, there is still a small risk for developing cancer of the “peritoneum,” which is the lining of the abdomen. This type of cancer, called “primary peritoneal cancer,” is related to ovarian cancer. Although the risk remains, it is quite small. Currently there is no proven method of preventing or screening for primary peritoneal cancer. For more information see our section on primary peritoneal cancer. Read the rest of this entry »
Breast reconstruction is surgery to recreate breasts after mastectomy. “Unilateral reconstruction” is recreation of one breast. “Bilateral reconstruction” involves both breasts. Reconstructive procedures have evolved tremendously in the last decade. In past years, reconstructive surgeons tried to restore a woman’s profile in clothes. Now the goal of many surgeons is to make a woman look as natural as possible whether clothed or not. Reconstruction can replace the look of breasts, but even the best surgeons and the newest techniques can’t replace all sensation lost when chest nerves are severed during mastectomy, completely eliminate breast scars, or restore the ability to breastfeed. Read the rest of this entry »
Mastectomy is removal of breast tissue to treat or prevent breast cancer. “Unilateral mastectomy” is the surgical removal of one breast. “Bilateral mastectomy” is the removal of both breasts. “Prophylactic mastectomy” refers to the removal of healthy breasts to reduce a woman’s risk of developing breast cancer. Bilateral prophylactic mastectomy is the most effective means of reducing a woman’s risk; however, the benefits of such surgery depend on each woman’s individual risk. Because even the most experienced breast surgeon cannot remove all breast tissue, a small risk of developing breast cancer remains after prophylactic mastectomy. Although effective, some consider prophylactic mastectomy to be a drastic way to lower cancer risk. A woman’s decision to remove her healthy breasts is highly personal. Confronting your personal cancer risk can be confusing and frustrating. If you are a high-risk woman trying to choose the best risk-management option, you need a clear sense of your personal risk as possible and an understanding of the potential benefits, risks and side effects of prophylactic surgery. Therefore it is important to consult with a specialist in cancer genetics when determining your risk for breast cancer and making risk-management decisions that are best for you. Stay in contact with a genetics expert for updates on current knowledge. Read the rest of this entry »
Close surveillance or screening for cancer uses tests on a routine basis to identify cancer early on, at its most treatable stage. Surveillance doesn’t prevent cancer; however, catching cancer early improves a person’s odds of survival.
Ovarian cancer is particularly difficult to detect. Hidden deep in the abdominal cavity, ovaries are difficult to view or feel; abnormalities are not always found early. Even with the most rigorous surveillance, ovarian cancer is often detected only in its advanced stage. Even when detected early, the disease often requires aggressive treatment such as chemotherapy. Read the rest of this entry »
Close surveillance or screening for cancer routinely uses tests to try to catch cancer in its early stages, when it is most treatable. Surveillance doesn’t prevent cancer. However, early detection improves a person’s chance of surviving their cancer. Studies of breast cancer screening tools for high-risk women, some including women with BRCA mutations, found certain screening more likely to detect cancer. Whether close surveillance will lower the death rate from breast cancer in high-risk women is unknown. Nevertheless, based on these studies, recommendations for breast cancer screening in the high-risk population differ from recommendations for the general population. Read the rest of this entry »
Chemoprevention is the use of medication to reduce risk or prevent diseases such as cancer in healthy people. Some chemoprevention medications may reduce the risk for ovarian cancer. Just how well these drugs perform in high-risk women depends on each woman’s individual level of risk. Because some chemoprevention research may not apply to every person with hereditary cancer risk, when considering your best risk management options, it is important to have a clear a sense of your own risk, as well as the potential benefits and side effects of these medications. A health care team with expertise in managing high-risk patients can help you get a clearer idea of your risk for cancer so you can choose a risk management option that is right for you. Please visit our clinical trials section for information on studies to lower the risk for ovarian cancer. Read the rest of this entry »
Chemoprevention is the use of medication to lower the risk or prevent cancer in healthy people. Some chemoprevention medications reduce breast cancer risk. However, just how well these drugs perform in high-risk women depends on each woman’s individual level of risk. Many past studies of these medications focused on women in the general population or women whose risk for breast cancer was based on the Gail Model, a risk assessment tool, therefore the research may not apply to everyone with hereditary cancer risk. When choosing the best risk management option for yourself, you need a clear sense of your risk (a health care team with expertise in managing high-risk patients can help you identify this) and an understanding of the potential benefits and side effects of chemopreventive medications. For more information see our section on risk assessment for breast cancer based on the Gail Model. Studies are ongoing to identify new medications to lower the risk or prevent breast cancer. Please visit our research and clinical trials section for information on these studies. Read the rest of this entry »
Cancer is a complex disease with many contributing causes, including hereditary factors. Women with a BRCA mutation have an elevated risk for breast and/or ovarian cancer. Some women who have a personal or family history indicative of a hereditary cancer syndrome who have not tested positive for a BRCA mutation may still have an elevated risk for these cancers. Experts use research on families with hereditary cancer to estimate the risk in people with BRCA mutations. Not all research has shown the same lifetime risk for cancer, even in two people with the same mutation. There are many reasons why risks for breast and ovarian cancer may differ. Varying factors such as environment, reproductive history, exercise level and body weight may effect who develops cancer and at what age. Many people base their risk-management decisions on their level of risk; a difference between a lifetime risk for breast cancer of 85% vs. 45% may alter their risk-management choices. Unfortunately, it is difficult to calculate a person’s exact risk of developing cancer in her lifetime. Nor can experts predict at what age someone might develop cancer. Read the rest of this entry »
Cancer risk assessment, risk factors and risk management options may differ for people with hereditary cancer risk or a BRCA mutation than for people in the general population. It is important to consult an expert in cancer risk assessment and risk management to determine what your personal risk for hereditary cancer may be. For more information, see our finding a specialist in hereditary cancer section. Read the rest of this entry »