Risk-reducing mastectomy may lower breast cancer mortality in some women: Study

Riskreducing mastectomies RRM in women with a BRCA1 or BRCA2 genetic variant may significantly reduce the risk of being diagnosed with breast cancer and also lower the probability of deathThe study published in the British Journal of Cancer examined how RRM affects the rate of death of women with a pathogenic variant but no cancer diagnosisWomen who have an inherited BRCA1 or BRCA2 variant have an 80 per cent risk of developing breast cancer over the course of their lifetimeResearch has shown that an RRM reduces the risk of breast cancer by 90 per centThe decision to have a risk reducing mastectomy is often difficult for a woman to make and the more evidence we are able to provide them with when they are making that decision the more informed their care plan will be said Prof Kelly Metcalfe of the Lawrence Bloomberg Faculty of Nursing from University of Toronto CanadaMetcalfe said that in Canada 30 per cent of women with a pathogenic variant opt for this surgery It is Metcalfe said one of the most effective ways of preventing breast cancer in women with this risk profileThrough a pseudorandomised trial Metcalfe and her team followed over 1600 participants from a registry of women with a pathogenic BRCA 12 variant from nine different countries over the course of six years with half of the women having a riskreducing mastectomyAt the end of the trial there were 20 incident breast cancers and two deaths in the group who opted for a RRM and 100 incident breast cancers and seven deaths in the control groupRRM reduced the risk of breast cancer by 80 per cent and the probability of dying of breast cancer 15 years after riskreducing mastectomy was less than one per centAlthough there wasnt a significant difference in deaths between the two groups in this study we know that a risk reducing mastectomy significantly reduces the risk of ever developing breast cancer Metcalfe saidMetcalfe pointed out that following these participants for an extended period would generate more evidence to assess the true mortality risk with precision and highlight the benefits associated with this type of surgeryRight now we have good screening in place for breast cancer including breast MRI so surgery is only offered as an option not a recommendation Metcalfe saidBut with more studies being conducted to assess womens trajectory and risk factors following RRM we will know whether these guidelines need to be changed in the futureThis story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed agencies Midday accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability trustworthiness reliability and data of the text Midday managementmiddaycom reserves the sole right to alter delete or remove without notice the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever