BRCA testing

Hi,
My family has a hisory of breast cancer on the maternal side and I had a borderline ovarian turmor Apr07.  I already do my monthly self breast exam and yearl mamograms. So if anyone knows,  what would the advantage of having a BRCA test performed. Also could this cause any problems with insurance coverage ?

[withe]

My mother and aunts had histories of breast and ovarian cancer, so my sister and I got tested. Insurance companies and employers are not legally supposed to discriminate against those with gene mutations however, this does not mean they won't. Bear in mind that a positive test result does not equal cancers, it does increase your chances of getting them. I haven't had any problems with insurance ( covered the cost of genetic testing which is between 1,000 and 2,000 for first family member tested ) Please note that since that time I have not tried to change coverage or insurance companies. There has been discussions on this in the past, you should review the archives. Hope this helps. Withe

[westajul]

Thanks...I will check the archives. Just was wondering ...since my doctor mentioned it. I will check and see if my insurance covers it. Julie

[momofsandj]

Most insurance companies have to precertify the test but will do so if there are two first degree relatives with breast, ovarian, pancreatic or prostate......There was a bill pending making it illegal to descrimitate based on genetic testing but I don't know if it became law -- my cousin hasn't gotten tested because of these concerns and her father has had 4 cancers, my mother (her aunt) died of breast, my sister died of ovarian and I have ovarian --- I would think she'd want to know regardless........my test was more in the 3 or 4 thousand dollar range but insurance covered the whole thing
The advantage to having the test performed if you already have an issue is only that you know that your biological children may be at higher risk than the general population -- presumably you are having regular checkups and are vigilant anyway so it may or may not help you --- on the flip side, they now are finding that there are differences in how people react to things like birth control pills if you are BRCA1 positive versus BRCA2 or no mutation so as things come down the pipeline that differentiate it would be helpful to know for yourself....

[Flo2]

Hi,

There is also a website specifically for BRCA positive people and those who are high risk due to family history.  They are a knowledgeable bunch so it might be worthwhile to post there for input.

Regards.

[Flo2]

Its called FORCE - www.facingourrisk.org