Cancers are very dangerous diseases because they can exist in one’s body ignorantly. Its initial anonymous nature is the reason why it’s advisable to carry out specific tests to screen out cancer in time. One of such tests is the BRAC analysis.
HBOC is a hereditary disease that anyone can transfer to family members through a genetic mutation. Breast, ovarian, and other cancers are more likely to occur in people with Hereditary Breast and Ovarian Cancer Syndrome (HBOC).
You can employ genetic testing to determine if your family’s history of cancer links to HBOC. If you are diagnosed with HBOC, there are measures to prevent or identify cancer early on.
To find out if you have a higher risk of HBOC, talk to your physician about your personal and family history of cancer. In this case, your physician will recommend the Brack analysis.
This procedure is a test that helps to discover if you have HBOC syndrome. But what exactly does this test do?
In this article, you will learn about BRAC analysis and how it helps during pregnancy.
Read: What To Do Instead Of Douching
What is BRAC analysis?
BRAC analysis is an important test that physicians perform to detect detrimental alterations (mutations) in the BRCA1 and BRCA2 breast cancer susceptibility genes.
In general, those who inherit mutations in these genes are more likely to get breast cancer and ovarian cancer than those who don’t have them.
The BRAC gene test is accessible to persons with a personal or family history of breast or ovarian cancer and at risk of inheriting a hereditary mutation. People with no chance of breast or ovarian cancer need not test for the BRAC gene.
It’s not always evident what the outcomes of genetic testing are. A gene mutation may increase cancer risk, but you may work with a physician to manage that risk if they get a positive result.
For example, you might have an undiscovered gene mutation if you get a negative test result. Your test may reveal a gene mutation about which experts are unsure. When it comes to cancer risk, it isn’t always apparent what the test findings signify.
The vast majority of people who are interested in genetic testing go to genetic counselors for advice. A genetic counselor may help you comprehend the results, determine if genetic testing is correct, and set a combination of genetic tests depending on your family history.
Why is BRAC analysis essential?
There are two genes in focus here: the BRAC1 and BRAC2. The goal of the BRAC analysis is to check your body for the presence of these genes and determine your risks of having the following:
- Breast cancer
- Prostate cancer
- Male breast cancer
- Ovarian cancer
- Pancreatic cancer
Watch: BRACAnalysis CDx approved by FDA for metastatic breast cancer – Myriad Genetics
BRACAnalysis CDx, has been approved by the FDA for patients with HER2- metastatic breast cancer to identify those that may benefit from treatment with Lynparza.
Signs that you need the BRAC analysis
Any member of your family can carry the HBOC unknowingly. Having a relative with any history of cancer whether breast or ovarion is a sign that you will need the BRAC analysis.
It is important to tell your doctor if you have any of the following:
- Relatives with mammary cancer under the age of 45
- cancer of the breasts in women 46-50 years old or younger and at least one first-degree relative with breast cancer of any age or a restricted family history
- Any male of any age with breast cancer.
- Cancer of the ovaries, fallopian tubes, or the peritoneum.
- Cancer of the pancreas or the prostate with a Gleason score below seven (Gleason score is a measure of the grade of the tumor)
- Multiple blood relations with breast, ovarian, pancreatic, or prostate cancer
- A family member with a known BRAC mutation.
Read: Postpartum Belly Binding
How to handle the BRAC analysis
Speak to your physician if you’re concerned about your or your family’s cancer history.
Learn more about the advantages and disadvantages of genetic testing for HBOC. Many healthcare plans under the Affordable Care Act provide BRAC genetic counseling and testing for free.
Genetic testing for breast or ovarian cancer should begin with someone in the immediate family diagnosed with the disease. It’s possible that other family members (such as relatives, children, parents, grandparents, aunts, uncles, and distant cousins) have the BRCA mutation and should seek genetic counseling and testing if you or a member of your family discovers it.
BRAC inheritance pattern
The majority of incidences of breast cancer do not pass down via families. Somatic breast cell mutations acquired over a person’s lifetime are the primary cause of these malignancies, and they do not cluster in families.
It is the gene itself that determines whether or not a person will get hereditary breast cancer. When it comes to cancer, for example, a single copy of the BRCA1 or BRCA2 gene mutations can raise a person’s risk by as much as a factor of ten or more.
If you have breast cancer, the faulty gene might come from either your mother or your father, even though breast cancer is more frequent in women.
The cancer-risk-increasing gene mutations in the diseases above are all passed down in an autosomal dominant manner. It is vital to remember that people inherit a greater risk of cancer, not the illness itself. Cancer will not develop in everyone who carries one of these gene mutations in their family.
Most breast cancer clusters in families have a genetic foundation and a method of inheritance that is yet unknown.