PREVENTION

Feds: Ashkenazi Jews Should Consider Breast Cancer Gene Test

Studies have shown that one in 40 Ashkenazi Jews have one of three specific BRCA1 or BRCA2 mutations.

A federal task force is now recommending that people take their ancestry into consideration when deciding whether to get screened for genetic mutations linked to breast cancer—guidance that appears to be aimed at Ashkenazi Jews. Studies have shown that one in 40 Ashkenazi Jews have one of the BRCA1 or BRCA2 mutations, compared with one in 300 people in the general population. The recommendation published in the Journal of the American Medical Association does not specify which ancestry should think about getting tested, but the task force is certainly referring to Ashkenazi Jews, who are disproportionately affected by the mutations.

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Shira Feder

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