Why take deCODE Breast Cancer™?
There are 3 reasons for using the deCODE BreastCancer™ test for defining a patient’s genetic risk for breast cancer. 1) According to the American Cancer Society (ACS), high-risk women with a 20% lifetime risk (or a relative risk of 1.65 based on the deCODE BreastCancer™ test) should have a yearly breast MRI added to the usual yearly mammography beginning at age 40. MRI can detect many more early tumors before they spread than standard mammography, but it is only recommended for higher-risk women. The ACS also recommends that physicians consider breast MRI for patients who have a modestly high risk for breast cancer based on lifetime risks of 15 to 20% (relative risks of 1.25 to 1.65). 2) According to the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO), higher-risk women (defined as having greater than a 1.66% 5-year risk) should consider with their physicians whether to use tamoxifen (or similar drugs that also block the effects of estrogen, which can drive small tumors into larger tumors
