I have metastatic TNBC (in remission) and am in my late 60s. When I was originally diagnosed in 2022, I asked about the possibility of testing for BRCA1/2 defects, and was told it wasn’t offered to my age group unless there was cancer in the family. I am an only child and neither of my parents had cancer in their lifetime. Today, out of the blue, I got a call from my CNS. She said they had been reviewing their patient list against new guidance for genetic testing, I am eligible, and they want to offer me the chance to have it done. The chances of me being a carrier are not high. Whilst a significant proportion of people with BRCA1//2 defects develop TNBC, it doesn’t follow that just because I have TNBC I am highly likely to have a gene defect.
The one direct benefit of testing is that if I am found to be a carrier, it offers up the possibility of being treated with Olaparib if/when I need another treatment line. If I am a carrier, my adult son and daughter could also be carriers. Both are in their 30s and new parents themselves. I am unsure whether I feel comfortable doing something that could burden them with knowledge they might not currently want.
My options would seem to be (a) get tested anyway and hope I can tell my children I have been tested and am not a carrier, or (b) get tested only if my remission ends, to see if I have olaparib as a treatment option.
I am wondering if anyone else has had this dilemma and if so how they decided what to do. And for anyone who is a carrier, how you went about talking to your family.