Breast cancer four times more likely in women with strong family history
19. 01. 2009 | British Journal of Cancer Press Release
Women who have a strong family history of breast cancer are over four times more likely to develop the disease than the general population, according to research published in the British Journal of Cancer [1].
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This is the first time the risk for women who do not have a faulty BRCA gene but have one first-degree relative under 50 with breast cancer and at least one other relative with breast cancer, or three relatives of any age, has been quantified.
The lifetime risk of breast cancer in the general population is one in nine. For the group studied, this risk increased to just over one in three.
The researchers believe that a significant family history of breast cancer alone could be strong enough grounds for doctors to offer preventative treatments – such as tamoxifen, which is given to most women with breast cancer to help prevent the disease from returning.
Lead researcher, Dr Steven Narod, based at the University of Toronto in Canada, said: "Although the risk of breast cancer for this group of women – those with a family history of the disease but who don't carry a faulty BRCA gene – is not as high as those who do carry the gene, it is still significant enough for doctors to start thinking about appropriate preventative treatments to stop women developing the disease.
"This is the first time the breast cancer risk for this group of women has been measured, and it's significantly higher than that of the general population. It's important to start thinking about action to prevent breast cancer in women who are at high risk of developing the disease."
Reference
- Metcalfe KA, Finch A, et al. Breast cancer risks in women with a family history of breast or ovarian cancer who have tested negative for a BRCA1 or BRCA2 mutation. British Journal of Cancer 2009; 100(2): 421–425. doi: 10.1038/sj.bjc.6604830
Keywords: breast cancer risk, family history
