Breast cancer in the family
 

Well, my last visit to this site was in Oct 2010.
My daughter in law died a week ago from HER2 breast cancer. Her mother and grandmother also were killed by breast cancer.
I am concerned about my 15 year old granddaughter.
What options are available to keep her free of this disease?

Re: Breast cancer in the family
 

Hi,

I'm so sorry to hear another BC fighter has lost her battle.

At 15, I'm not sure anything needs to be done with a family breast cancer history like your grand daughter's.

She probably needs to be monitored by a breast specialist regularly. Her doctor might suggest a genetic test to see if she carries the BRCA1, BRCA2 genes. I had a prophylactic histerectomy/oophorectomy two years ago after my 2nd Brother was diagnosed with colon cancer. That made our family cancer history look very much like what's described in the HNPCC cluster.


I've read the book by the founder of Susan G. Komen foundation. Susan Komen also had a strong family history of breast cancer. She did mammogram every year staring in her 20's, but the cancer was still found too late.

There are better ways to montior/detect breast cancer now. Please find a reputable breast cancer specialist in a cancer center and encourage your grand daugher to stay fit and eat a balanced diet that's low sugar and low fat.


My condolence to you and your family.

Re: Breast cancer in the family
 

Jackie07, thanks for the good advice.
Can't seem to get rid of this bold font.

Re: Breast cancer in the family
 

Rob, I'm very sorry for your loss.

I understand your concern for your granddaughter - especially with family history of disease. Perhaps you can find out if your daughter-in-law was tested for BRCA gene mutation? And if so, did she test positive for BRCA1 or BRCA2?

Please note not all children of people who have a gene mutation will inherit the mutation. On the other hand, having a negative test result does not mean that a person will not develop cancer. A negative result means that the person’s risk of cancer is probably the same as that of people in the general population.

Just my opinion: Since your grand daughter is only a teenager, I wouldn't be immediately concerned with testing her now. Medical Science will have more research results and many more advances, including different tests in future years. By the time your grand daughter is at age of higher risk, in her 20s or 30s, medical science will have more tests, possibly vaccines, and perhaps a BC cure by then.

Adopting a healthy lifestyle and eating healthy are her best options now. Google search "eating to prevent cancer"---there's a lot of great information available.

I hope you find this information helpful.
my condolences for your loss. Hugs, Joanne

Re: Breast cancer in the family
 

Joanne
I appreciate your good advice.
Rob

Re: Breast cancer in the family
 

Yep, I agree with the others. When she's older, she can get tested for the brca mutation. If she comes up positive, she can decide if she wants to do anything in advance. If she is negative, she will just have to find a doctor willing to monitor her earlier than normal.

It's a good opportunity to remind her to take care of her health. There is evidence that obesity and alcohol can heighten your risk of breast cancer, so she will want to try to be as healthy as she can be and avoid those things. However, there were many of us (like me) who had a healthy lifestyle and no family history who got it so those things are not guarantees.

I'm sorry for the loss of so many family members.

Re: Breast cancer in the family
 

Personally, I would have genetic testing done sooner than later. It is a painless blood test. I am thinking that she is already scared and anxious that she will be next. A test could rule this out, or arm her with information that could save her life. Just mt opinion!!! (sign me BRCA2+!!!)

Re: Breast cancer in the family
 

Your Daughter-in-law's family and yours are in my Prayers. My heart is sadden greatly for your granddaughter.Gods blessings to all.

Re: Breast cancer in the family
 

Rob,

I am so sorry to hear about your daughter-in-law. My heart goes out to you and her family. I realize that your granddaughter is only 15 but I believe it is a good idea to look into options now. I agree with Suzan about the genetic testing. It is only a blood test and will help her to make decisions on preventative measures when she is ready. I would also try to get her into a screening program when she turned 20, if possible. Mammograms will likely not detect anything given her age but they could potentially do MRIs. I had just turned 31 at diagnosis and had no breast cancer in my family. My surgeon said it had likely been there for years. (I was stage 2b/3 at diagnosis.) My cancer was not detected by a mammogram either. Something suspicious was detected by ultrasound and then confirmed to be cancer through a biopsy and MRI. I am not trying to scare you or your granddaughter. I truly believe the earlier you catch it the better your odds and I just want to make sure that she has the odds in her favour. I have a community of young survivors in my town that get together once a month and there are about 30 of us in our 20s and 30s. The youngest person I know of was 22 years old at diagnosis. Finally, she should make sure to do breast exams monthly. All of the young survivors I know of found the lumps themselves and went in for testing as many were too young to be in screening programs. I hope this helps!

Cat

Re: Breast cancer in the family
 

Rob, I am so sorry for your loss. Here is a link that might interest you- it's to a special Breast Cancer Prevention Program at UCSF. I don't know where you live, but maybe there is something like this at a nearby cancer center-

http://www.ucsfhealth.org/programs/b...ram/index.html

My own daughter, in her 20's has started to go to UCSF for an annual appointment.

good luck to you, and again, so sorry for your losses.

Turtle.