23andMe gene test might falsely reassure some people of breast cancer risk: Study

[question everything]

Since 2010, 23andMe has charged people to test themselves for potentially harmful gene mutations, such as those in the BRCA1 and BRCA2 genes, which, when mutated, can dramatically increase a person’s risk for developing breast or ovarian cancer.

But while 23andMe can screen for the three most well-known BRCA mutations, the test is not FDA-approved to test for the remaining 1,000-plus BRCA mutations. This presents a problem: As many as 94% of people carrying a BRCA mutation may receive a false-negative if they take the stripped-down test 23andMe offers, according to a recent study.

Dr. Pamela Munster, an oncologist and director of the Center for BRCA Research at UC San Francisco Medical Center, is one person who received one of these false-negatives. Two years after taking the 23andMe test in 2010, she was diagnosed with breast cancer.

More..

https://abcnews.go.com/Health/23andme-gene-test-falsely-reassure-people-breast-cancer/story?id=62488839

[HopeAgain]

1. Ask sny geneticist or genetic counselor

and they will tell you 23andMe is not an ethical company.