Limmud Bay Area 2016

Most cancers are caused by a variety of factors including lifestyle, environment, and overall genetic makeup. However, 5-10% of cancers are hereditary, meaning that they were caused by a genetic change or mutation a person was born with that was passed down from a parent. Of the 5-10% of breast and ovarian cancer caused by an inherited mutation, most cases are due to a mutation in the BRCA1 or BRCA2 genes. These mutations increase the probability of developing certain cancers including breast, ovarian, pancreatic, prostate, or melanoma and 1 in 40 Ashkenazi Jews carries a BRCA mutation. This informative session discusses the options for BRCA mutation testing for people with or without a family history of cancer, who in a family should get testing, and what to do to prevent cancer if a person has a mutation.