Breast And Ovarian Cancer Link - Serious Replies Only!?
I was diagnosed with Ovarian Cancer but have a long family history of Breast Cancer (paternal grandmother, her sisters, their daughters, etc., many have died from it). Am I at a higher risk with developing Breast Cancer, considering I have been diagnosed with one type of Cancer and my family history combined?
The fact you had ovarian cancer makes you at a higher risk for breast cancer.
It is possible one of the BRCA genes is in your family particularly if any of your relatives were under 40 when diagnosed, if any were male, if any had breast cancer more than once or had breast and ovarian cancer.
It is far easier and less expensive to test someone for these gene mutations who has already been diagnosed with breast cancer than it is for someone who has not. Usually the oncologist will bring this up to their patients when they feel there is a possibility. If any of your relatives were tested than your father should be tested because he is at risk too. If he doesn’t have it there is no chance for it to have been handed down to you. If you and/or your father are positive you are both at a higher risk for other cancers besides breast cancer.
In absence of this gene your family history would not be considered a high risk factor unless one of them is a first degree relative.