Should kids be tested for the cancer gene?

Mothers who tested positive for breast cancer gene are now asking a tough question – should we test the kids?

Women with a faulty gene have a three to seven times greater risk of developing breast cancer and a higher risk of ovarian cancer. Men have more risk of prostate, pancreatic and other types of cancer.

With insurance now covering for genetic tests and a law banning genetic discrimination, more BRCA gene carrying parents want to know if their kids are carriers too. However, little can be done to prevent or screen for breast or ovarian cancer before age 25, so knowing your genetic make-up would only cause needless worry, advised medical experts. If either parent does have the gene, the child has a 50% chance of inheriting it. So unless the risk of childhood cancer is high, and nothing can be done to lower it, cancer groups advise against having children tested.

But some parents think the opposite is true. In their opinion, knowledge would discourage their children from engaging in high-risk behavior such as smoking, consuming alcohol and using birth control pills.

What’s your take? Should children get tested for breast or ovarian cancer?

SHOUT OUT: October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month, and Karen at Pink Ribbon Review is all about being an advocate for the disease.

image: flickr