Irina Brooke joins me for this podcast episode. She is an patient advocate with the mission of supporting people with BRCA mutations and educating the public on this testing and how it can empower healthcare decisions.
On This Episode We Discuss…
Deciding to pursue genetic testing and results
Qualifications for having a strong family history of ovarian, breast and/or prostate cancer
The risk of passing on a BRCA mutation to a child
Males inheriting gene mutations
Genetic counseling process and experience
Cancer development risk level for people who have BRCA gene mutations
Beyond BRCA, additional gene mutations that increases one’s risk for developing cancer
Options for preventing and monitoring cancer
Recovering from breast cancer
Support systems available
Getting involved in the patient advocacy community
BRCA community terms (previvor, mutantvivor, etc.)
Advice to those with family history of cancer and those who have a BRCA mutation
Check out Irina’s Instagram, Facebook page, and Facebook group for women in the hereditary breast and ovarian cancer community with mutations (BRCA etc.). She also shares her journey on her website’s blog.
Stay tuned for the next new episode of DNA Today on May 18th, 2018.
New episodes are released on the first and third Fridays of the month. See what else I am up to on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook and iTunes. Questions/inquiries can be sent to info@DNApodcast.com.
