Breast Cancer Genes Don't Impact Survival
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Carrying a mutation in a breast cancer gene elevates your risk of being diagnosed with breast cancer but does it impact your likelihood of survival? For years, scientists have speculated that women who carry the breast cancer genes have poorer outcomes. A new study published in the July 12, 2007 i 
ssue of the New England Journal of Medicine found similar death rates among carriers of mutations in breast cancer genes and other women diagnosed with breast cancer.
The breast cancer genes BRCA1 and BRCA2 were discovered in the early 1990s. Both BRCA1 and BRCA2 are considered "tumor suppressor genes, genes that modulate cell cycle division by keeping cells from growing and dividing in an uncontrolled way. When a mutation, a genetic alteration, occurs in one of these genes, the proteins encoded by these genes are not manufactured properly.
These proteins are essential for repairing DNA damage in other genes, and when the protein is faulty, tumors are allowed to grow, which can result in the formation of breast cancer tumors. While only about 5% of all women diagnosed with breast cancer are found to be carriers of the mutations, the lifetime risk for breast cancer in women who carry one of these genes is about 85%.
The current study compared 10 year survival among about 1500 Israeli women who had breast cancer. The study was conducted in Israel where about 60% of the population is of Ashkenazi Jewish heritage; it is estimated that about 2% of all women of Ashkenazi Jewish heritage, and about 12% of Ashkenazi Jews who have been diagnosed with breast cancer, carry a mutation in either of the breast cancer genes. The study retrospectively performed analysis on tumor samples to assess whether mutations in the BRCA1 or BRCA2 genes were present.
The breast cancer genes BRCA1 and BRCA2 were discovered in the early 1990s. Both BRCA1 and BRCA2 are considered "tumor suppressor genes, genes that modulate cell cycle division by keeping cells from growing and dividing in an uncontrolled way. When a mutation, a genetic alteration, occurs in one of these genes, the proteins encoded by these genes are not manufactured properly.
These proteins are essential for repairing DNA damage in other genes, and when the protein is faulty, tumors are allowed to grow, which can result in the formation of breast cancer tumors. While only about 5% of all women diagnosed with breast cancer are found to be carriers of the mutations, the lifetime risk for breast cancer in women who carry one of these genes is about 85%.
The current study compared 10 year survival among about 1500 Israeli women who had breast cancer. The study was conducted in Israel where about 60% of the population is of Ashkenazi Jewish heritage; it is estimated that about 2% of all women of Ashkenazi Jewish heritage, and about 12% of Ashkenazi Jews who have been diagnosed with breast cancer, carry a mutation in either of the breast cancer genes. The study retrospectively performed analysis on tumor samples to assess whether mutations in the BRCA1 or BRCA2 genes were present.