- Approximately 5 – 10 per cent of breast cancers are hereditary
- BRCA is an abbreviation for ‘breast cancer gene’
- Around one in 400 people carry mutated BRCA1 or BRCA2 genes
- Carrying a mutated BRCA1 or BRCA2 gene increases a woman’s risk of developing breast cancer and ovarian cancer
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Approximately 55 – 65 per cent of women who carry the BRCA1 mutation will be diagnosed with breast cancer before age 70
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Approximately 45 per cent of women with the BRCA2 gene mutation will develop breast cancer by age 70
People with a strong family history of breast cancer, or with a relative who has been found to carry the faulty gene, may be eligible for genetic testing.
