Catching Cancer Early: Genetic Tests of Blood Can Detect a Mutation That Increases the Risk of Ovarian and Breast Cancers.

By Nicole Nascenzi, Tulsa World, Okla.

Feb. 23–Genetic testing no longer is seen primarily in science-fiction movies and clinical research projects. Technology now provides a way for many women to discover whether they are at risk for an often silent killer — ovarian cancer.

Although most cancers occur by chance, a blood test can tell whether a patient has one of two types of a genetic mutation, known as BRCA1 and BRCA2. Women with the mutation have a significantly increased risk of breast and ovarian cancer; men with the mutation also have an increased risk of breast cancer. Both sexes can pass the mutation on to their children.

Terry Marcum, 51, of Tulsa said she wishes she had known about the test. If she had taken the genetic test and known her risks, her ovarian cancer might have been diagnosed sooner than March 2005, she said.

During her recovery from the cancer, Marcum said, she had the genetic testing done so that she would be able to share the information with her family and make better medical decisions for herself.

Ovarian cancer earned the label “silent killer” because the beginning stages of the disease have few symptoms. Later-stage symptoms such as bloating, fatigue and abdominal pain are easily missed, said Dr. Elizabeth Keeler of the Department of Gynecologic Oncology at the University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center in Houston.

Keeler, an expert on ovarian cancer, will be one of several speakers at an educational event at 9 a.m. Sunday at B’Nai Emunah Synagogue, 1719 S. Owasso Ave.

In the general population, people have an approximately 1 in 500 chance of having one of the gene mutations, but the chance for people of Ashkenazi Jewish heritage is 1 in 50, Keeler said.

The increased risk for those of Jewish heritage is one of the reasons the B’Nai Emunah Sisterhood chose to have the event, organizer Adi Kalika said.

Keeler said the offspring of a person with the gene mutation have a 50 percent chance of inheriting the mutation.

Liz Williams did not realize that she was starting a family trend when she developed breast cancer five years ago. Since then, her cancer has recurred, and her daughter and granddaughter have battled the disease. All three have had mastectomies.

Williams and her granddaughter Kara Beeler tested positive for the genetic mutation. Her daughter Karen Howerton did not have the test because the results more than likely would duplicate those of her relatives’ tests.

Beeler, who developed breast cancer last year at 31, she said the genetic testing made it easier for her to decide to have both breasts removed to reduce the chance that the cancer might return.

Beeler is taking medication to reduce her chance of developing ovarian cancer and one day might have her ovaries removed, she said.

Julie Sluss, a registered nurse with training in genetic testing and counseling, conducts testing for the BRCA mutations at the St. Francis Hospital Breast Center. The testing costs about $3,000, but many insurance plans will cover testing for people who are at risk, she said.

“This is all about empowering women to be proactive,” Sluss said.

Each patient is able to design her own treatment plan. Some patients decide to have preventive surgeries such as ovary removal, while others decide to be monitored closely by doctors.

Beeler has a 5-year-old son and two daughters, ages 11 and 14. Each performs a complete breast self-exam each month because there is a 50 percent chance that they have contracted the gene mutation, she said.

For more information, call Sluss at 502-9531 or go online to www.myriad.com/products/bracanalysis.php

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Copyright (c) 2006, Tulsa World, Okla.

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