A study published in the ‘Journal of the National Cancer Institute’ found that women with breast cancer gene mutation have the same or better survival as women without mutation. The study was originally aimed at discerning cancer-specific mortality among carriers of the breast cancer gene (BRCA1/2) or a pathogenic variant of other similar cancer-related genes in a population-based setting.
For this study, data from surveillance epidemiology records and clinical genetic testing results of women with breast or ovarian cancer, between 2013 & 2017 were linked and analysed. Over 25000 cancer patients were analysed, and followed up for an average of 41 months. This data was used to examine the association between genetic results and cancer related deaths.
The results found that, in the short-term, amidst the breast cancer and ovarian cancer patients treated with chemotherapy, carriers of breast cancer related gene mutations had equivalent or lower cancer related deaths than non-carriers.
These findings can help reassure patients newly diagnosed with carrier genes about possible positive outcomes. Currently, researchers are continuing a longer follow-up of patients to better understand long-term outcomes.
Source: Allison W Kurian, MD, MSc, Paul Abrahamse, MA, Irina Bondarenko, MS, Ann S Hamilton, PhD, Dennis Deapen, DrPH, Scarlett L Gomez, PhD, Monica Morrow, MD, Jonathan S Berek, MD, MMSc, Timothy P Hofer, MD, MSc, Steven J Katz, MD, MPH, Kevin C Ward, PhD, MPH, Association of Genetic Testing Results With Mortality Among Women With Breast Cancer or Ovarian Cancer, JNCI: Journal of the National Cancer Institute, 2021.
Source link: https://academic.oup.com/jnci/advance-article-abstract/doi/10.1093/jnci/djab151/6346986?redirectedFrom=fulltext
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