Posted on 07/01/2004 6:28:06 PM PDT by Slings and Arrows
A young woman whose mother had her healthy breasts removed after it was found that she carried hereditary cancer genes is to undergo the same operation.
Becky Measures, 22, said she will have a double mastectomy after tests showed that she had a 90 per cent chance of contracting the disease in later life.
Her mother, Wendy Watson, became one of the first women in Britain to have a double mastectomy on healthy breasts.
The decision by Miss Measures, who works as a DJ on Peak 107 FM in Chesterfield, Derbys, is thought to be the first case of a daughter undergoing the same operation as her mother.
She said: "My mother had a double mastectomy 11 years ago although she hadn't got breast cancer and genetic tests at that time were in their infancy.
"It has been a major part of family life since I was very young. My grandmother and great grandmother died from breast cancer. At 22 it was a hard decision to make but I have grown up with it and I have just got to get on with it. My chances of catching breast cancer are minimal at the moment but as time goes on it would get more worrying.
"Before it gets to that stage it is better to get it out of the way. My boyfriend, family and friends are very supportive and it helps that my mum went through with the operation at 38."
She added: "Other family members have contracted breast cancer in their 30s and 40s so I have this large support network and the doctors have been fantastic. The surgeons carry out wonderful breast reconstruction jobs at the same time as the operation and their work is unbelievable.
"I have a lot to live for. This is my way of giving myself a future. A lot of women do not have the opportunity. I see it as a privilege."
Mrs Watson, 49, from Bakewell, Derbys, said: "When I had my double mastectomy it wasn't even recognised that breast cancer could be hereditary.
"When I discovered that nine family members had suffered breast cancer I went to my GP and asked what could be done.
"I had this awful feeling I was waiting to get breast cancer and hoping I had caught it in time."
After her operation, Mrs Watson set up the Genesis Hereditary Breast Cancer Helpline for women.
She has recently sat on a panel for the National Institute for Clinical Excellence developing guidelines for women at high risk of breast cancer.
There were a LOT of breast cancer,in thed past,in women who had eary pregnancies and breast fed.It just was NOT talkedx about.I remember a time,when NOBODY would say the word.It was spoken of in hushed terms and when talked about,people would say things such as: "So and so has the BIG C.
It's more than a likelihood--its almost a certainty that, unfortunately, you can take to the bank. A very tough call--wait for almost certain death (because I bet the cancer is usually an aggressive form for those with a double-gene defect), or hope medicine and gene therapy will catch up before your number comes up.
They do take out colon's prophylactically, say for someone with familial polyposis, which carries a high likelihood of progressing to colon cancer.
You have NO IDEA what you are talking about.
I can tell you that this surgery is done, here in the US.
This lady looked at available evidence, and made a decision. I'm sure it was not an easy one.
Why you have an opinion about her decision is beyond me.
Why should she play Russian Roulette with 9 full chambers and 1 empty? Perhaps declining to play the game is really better.
Well, being that she was born with breasts, not playing the game is sort of not an option.
My mother had breast cancer in her early 50's and my Father died of Colon cancer and my brother died of Lung Cancer. I've seriously considered doing what this woman has done.
Actually, the mastectomy is essentially getting out of the game.
Recommending a course of action that ensures a 90% chance of getting cancer has to be one of the more evil suggestions I've seen. Perhaps those recommending this course are really that ignorant of statistics. Casinos are doing rather well on a 2% vigorish.
The Human Genome Project tests genes on these women. If they test for the markers of breast cancer, it is a matter of time, NOT IF BT WHEN they will develop breast cancer. Wise thing to do. I'd do the same if I were in their shoes. And it is done here in the states. Chances are they 'saved' her nipples and attached them elsewhere on her body for reconstruction at a later date.
I knew of a woman who had her nipples grafted to her thighs until her reconstructive surgery. This was about 20 years ago.
http://www.ornl.gov/sci/techresources/Human_Genome/medicine/medicine.shtml
Sorry, I misunderstood you.
I am of the opinion that this was this woman's decision based on the information at hand...and she has every right to make it. It had to be tough to decide.
And I take great offense to those that in this instance chide the doctors for "playing the odds", because we do that ON A DAILY BASIS. It is the essence of what doctors do. Risk vs. benefit...action vs. inaction...agressive vs conservative.
Any of the posters on here who were placed in a similiar situation would have the opportunity to decide as they wish based on the opinions/facts they gathered. I would hope others would abide by that decision and recognize it as intensely personal. I bet this woman couldn't care less what people here think...and rightfully so.
Every day in medicine, Doctors do things that are controversial, for lots of different reasons but chief among them is to prolong life.
I am familiar enough with statistics and medicine to know that this decision is not even that controversial...yet it is amazing the contempt some on this thread have shown in their responses for both the woman AND the Doctors involved in her care.
You're correct; this one's not even close. It would be closer were the odds reversed. A 10% chance of cancer is no worse than smoking. A 90% chance of cancer calls for immediate action.
Her decision was made based on sound medical evidence, not simply family history. Why people think she is crazy to do this is beyond me.
Coca Cola on the keyboard and out of my nose!
Prostate cancer is nothing to jest about. The stats say that at age 60,6 out of every 10 men will get it,at 70,7 out of every 10 men,at 80,8 out of every 10 men AWILL get it and so one.Just get tested every year (it's only a simpled blood test!),after you turn 50-55.When caught early,prostate cancer is about 99.9& curable;unlike breast and ovarian cancer.
Yeah, that. I agree 100%, which isn't much higher than 90%, which is still high, especially when it's the chance at which you'll develop breast cancer. Follow that? ;-)
Thanks for the great post.
see this?
This was for you. I quoted the wrong member:
Yeah, that. I agree 100%, which isn't much higher than 90%, which is still high, especially when it's the chance at which you'll develop breast cancer. Follow that? ;-)
Thanks for the great post.
Explain to the lay person...this seems like good science.
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