Caregivers and Family

There's no better time to talk about your family's health history than when your loved ones are sitting around the table together. Family history, after all, is one of the main factors used to determine an individual's risk for developing diseases, including cancer. Many patients do not know that they are at risk before talking with a family member.

How a caregiver has navigated supporting her mother during brain cancer treatment.

When Cathleen Argyle learned she had breast cancer, she and her mother -- also a breast cancer survivor -- decided to undergo genetic testing. The results of Cathleen's test were positive: she had a mutation that increased her risk for cancer. But, the mutation didn't come from her mother. It came from her father.

Caregiving can be a challenge when times are "normal." Adding in a pandemic and caregiving takes on another level of challenge, but Russel Brand and his father found ways to make it easier.

People at average risk can take responsibility on behalf of a loved one with cancer by helping to limit their exposure to others. Wear a mask, social distance and plan to get a vaccine for the sake of your loved one. Go to the store or pharmacy to help that at-risk person avoid unnecessary trips out.

One in 8 American women will be diagnosed with breast cancer in her lifetime. Among all cases, about 10 percent are caused by the inherited genetic alterations BRCA1 and BRCA2. But many at-risk women don’t know they’re predisposed.

It now appears that as many as 1 in 10 patients diagnosed with pancreatic cancer carry a genetic alteration associated with an increased risk of pancreatic or other cancer types. If family members learn they may be at risk for pancreatic or other cancer types, they have more opportunities to take action.

Cancer can be an uncertain time for families, but one thing that’s clear is communication with children is essential when a parent or loved one is ill. Families Facing Cancer is a program that provides parents with information on how to talk to children of all ages about a cancer diagnosis.

Many of us are now aware that women with certain hereditary genetic mutations have an increased risk of breast cancer. What you might not know, though, is that some of those same genetic mutations -- and a handful of others -- are linked to aggressive prostate cancer in men.

Two genes, BRCA1 and BRCA2, if mutated are known to dramatically increase a woman’s risk of developing breast and ovarian cancer. Men can also carry these genes, and if they have a gene mutation, which also puts them at risk for developing breast and other cancers, though their breast cancer risk is not nearly as much as in women. Here's what you need to know about these genes and genetic testing.