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G02 - January 2006 - Taking Aim at Breast Cancer
Intro: Ten years ago, 48,000 women - mothers, wives, sisters - died every year from breast cancer. Today, that number has dropped to 40,000. But it's still too high. That's why many women who are at high risk of getting breast cancer choose genetic testing. They want to know if they have the gene so they can be proactive about reducing their risk of getting the disease. More from Mayo Clinic.
| Video | Audio |
Total running time 1:27 |
(NATS) "I ENJOY THE COMPETITION." "PULL!" "IT'S A SPORT YOU WIN OR LOSE ON YOUR OWN." "PULL!" |
VO: Deb Holbein shooting clay pigeons |
TO WIN A SKEET SHOOTING COMPETITION, BREAST CANCER SURVIVOR DEB HOLBEIN TAKES TRAINING SERIOUSLY. (NATS BANG, BANG, BANG, BANG) THAT'S ALSO HOW SHE APPROACHES BREAST CANCER. |
Deb Holbein |
"IT'S MY BATTLE AND NO ONE ELSE CAN FIGHT IT FOR ME." |
Standup |
DEB'S MOM AND AUNT HAD BREAST CANCER TOO. THAT MEANT DEB COULD BE A CARRIER OF ONE OF TWO BREAST CANCER GENES - BRCA1 OR BRCA2. TO FIND OUT, DEB CHOSE GENETIC TESTING BECAUSE SHE THOUGHT INFORMATION WAS THE AMMUNITION SHE NEEDED TO REDUCE HER RISK OF GETTING BREAST CANCER. DR. SANDHYA PRUTHI SAYS IF SOMEONE HAS ONE OF THESE GENES, |
Sandhya Pruthi, M.D. |
"THAT PERSON HAS A 40 TO 80 PERCENT RISK OF DEVELOPING BREAST CANCER IN HER LIFETIME." |
Options
|
SO WHAT SHOULD YOU DO IF YOU GET THE TEST AND IT'S POSITIVE? HERE ARE YOUR OPTIONS. TAKE MEDICATIONS SUCH AS TAMOXIFEN THAT REDUCE YOUR RISK. HAVE SURGERY TO REMOVE YOUR BREASTS. HAVE SURGERY TO REMOVE YOUR OVARIES. PARTICIPATE IN A CLINICAL TRIAL. OR CLOSE SURVEILLANCE. |
| Deb shooting | "PULL." |
| DEB CHOSE CLOSE MONITORING WITH SELF-BREAST EXAMS AND MAMMOGRAMS. THIS ALLOWED HER TO TAKE AIM AT HER CANCER WHILE IT WAS STILL CURABLE. | |
| Deb Holbein | "I WAS ON TOP OF IT." |
| AND DEB WILL CONTINUE TO BE ON TOP OF IT, AS SHE USES THE INFORMATION GENETIC TESTING GAVE HER TO ... | |
| Deb Holbein | "HONE MY SKILLS TO GET THE BEST SHOT AT IT. AND I THINK IT'S WORKING." |
| FOR MEDICAL EDGE, I'M VIVIEN WILLIAMS. | |
Tag: Genetic testing helped Deb prepare for her diagnosis of cancer. The test is offered only to high-risk women like Deb who have a strong family history of the disease, among other factors.
The test, which is a blood test, is very accurate, but it is not foolproof. If you have a negative result, meaning no gene was detected, there's a 15 percent chance you may have another genetic mutation that the test missed. So it's important to talk to a genetic counselor about the test and options for prevention that are right for you. For more information, log onto our Web site at ...
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