BRCA1

12 Stories

A 'Gift' Was Entangled in Chris Evert's Grief

Because Jeanne Evert Dubin had BRCA1 variant, the tennis legend got tested

(Newser) - Tennis legend Chris Evert on Tuesday announced she has beat the cancer that killed her younger sister in 2020. In a piece for ESPN , Evert recounts what led up to her discovery of stage 1 ovarian cancer a year ago . She writes that her sister, Jeanne Evert Dubin, underwent genetic...

Adultery, Burglary Could Have Derailed a Brilliant Scientist

But the kindness of strangers kept Mary-Claire King on her path

(Newser) - It's a story of devastating loss followed by one of incredible kindness, and it's a story that belongs to Dr. Mary-Claire King . Part of The Moth's latest book , it's reprinted by the HuffPost UK and takes place in April 1981, just days before King was scheduled...

$249 Saliva Test Could Reveal Cancer Risk

Color Genomics aims to 'democratize access to genetic testing'

(Newser) - A Silicon Valley start-up is setting out to make genetic testing for breast and ovarian cancer mutations not only easier, but more affordable for women. Color Genomics says it could "democratize access to genetic testing" for breast cancer risk genes BRCA1 and BRCA2 with a saliva test costing just...

Angelina Jolie: I Had My Ovaries Removed

She had surgery to avoid cancer that killed her mother

(Newser) - Angelina Jolie has had her ovaries and fallopian tubes removed and is now in menopause at the age of 39, she reveals in a New York Times op-ed. Jolie—who had a double mastectomy two years ago—says she decided on the preventive surgery because she has a mutated BRCA1...

Study: The 'Angelina Effect' Persists

After Jolie's double mastectomy, an increase in breast cancer clinic referrals

(Newser) - Angelina Jolie revealed in May 2013 that she'd undergone a double mastectomy after finding out she carried the "breast cancer gene"; what followed was an increase in referrals to breast cancer clinics. British researchers, who call the upswing "the Angelina Jolie effect," say it has been...

Jolie Aunt Dies of Breast Cancer

She loses cancer battle weeks after Jolie reveals surgery

(Newser) - Angelina Jolie's aunt has died of breast cancer just two weeks after Jolie revealed that she had a double mastectomy to prevent the same disease, E! Online reports. Debbie Martin, 61, was the younger sister of Jolie's mother, whose death from ovarian cancer in 2007 led to Jolie'...

Angelina Jolie: I Had Double Mastectomy

She reveals cancer-preventing surgery in 'NYT' op-ed

(Newser) - Angelina Jolie has had both her breasts surgically removed after learning that she carries the gene BRCA1, which sharply raises the risk of breast and ovarian cancer. "My doctors estimated that I had an 87% risk of breast cancer and a 50% risk of ovarian cancer," Jolie, whose...

Suit Challenges Patenting of Cancer Genes

(Newser) - A group of breast cancer and ovarian cancer patients has filed suit against the Patent Office for allowing a company to patent two human genes, the Courthouse News Service reports. The plaintiffs, who also include medical organizations and the ACLU, allege that Myriad Genetics' patents on the BRCA1 and BRCA2...

Family History of Breast Cancer Trumps Genes

Incidence among relatives is red flag, even without mutations

(Newser) - Women with family history of breast cancer are at elevated risk even if they don’t have a proven genetic indicator, HealthDay reports. Specific mutations in the BRCA gene correlate with an 80% lifetime risk of developing breast cancer; women in a new study who had a family history of...

Breast Cancer Risk Seen for Latinos, Blacks

Scientists find higher prevalance of mutated gene in new study

(Newser) - A genetic mutation that increases the risk of breast cancer has been linked to Hispanic and young black women, according to a new study. The findings could lead to changes in screening, the San Jose Mercury News reports. In the survey of 3,181 women with breast cancer, 16.7%...

New Key to Breast Cancer Discovered
New Key to Breast Cancer Discovered
Dec 10, 2007 4:57 AM CST

New Key to Breast Cancer Discovered

Understanding BRCA1 mutation may lead to new treatments

(Newser) - Scientists believe they've made a breakthrough discovery in why a certain genetic mutation can cause a particularly deadly form of breast cancer. Mutations in the BRCA1 gene are apparently linked to the loss of an important protein, PTEN, that checks cell growth, according to a new study in the journal...

Gene Doesn't Alter Cancer Survival Rates

Breast cancer triggered by BRCA1 and BRCA2 no more lethal than other forms

(Newser) - Women who carry one of the two known breast-cancer-causing genes—BRCA1 and BRCA2—are more likely to  be diagnosed with the disease before 50, but they're not more likely to die from it than other breast-cancer patients, a new study concludes. Tracking the 10-year survival rates of women in 22...

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