Family history of BRCA or related cancers

You may be worried if you have a history of breast, ovarian or other BRCA-related cancer in your family.

• A strong family history may mean there is an altered gene in your family, but this is not always the case. Around 10% of cancers are thought to be genetic.
• If a family member's cancer was linked to an altered BRCA gene, the gene and the increased risk can be passed on from mothers and fathers to their children. This is called genetic risk - risk linked to a change in a gene (genetic alteration).
• If there is an altered BRCA gene in your family, you may or may not have the inherited change that increases your risk of cancer. 
• Your GP can advise you about this and refer you to a genetics clinic, if necessary.

We inherit half our genes from our mother and half from our father. If either parent has a BRCA alteration, each child has a 50% (1 in 2) chance of inheriting this alteration.

If one of your parents has an altered BRCA gene, you have a 1 in 2 chance of inheriting it. 

• If you did not inherit the altered BRCA gene, you cannot pass it on to your children. Altered BRCA genes cannot skip a generation.
• If you do inherit the altered BRCA gene, your risk of cancer is increased, but you may not get cancer. 
• If you have the altered BRCA gene but you don’t get cancer, you can still pass the gene to your children. If this happens, they too can pass it on, even if they don’t get cancer. This means the gene can be present in different generations, but cancer may not develop in every generation.

Visit your GP

• If you’re worried about a family history of cancer, go to your GP. 
• Your GP will ask you about any members of your family who have had cancer and how old they were when they got it. It is best to find out as much information as you can, before you go to your GP. Write down the information, so you don’t forget. Don’t worry if you don’t know everything. 
• The GP can refer you to a genetics clinic if they think cancer in your family may be linked to the BRCA gene. 

If you're referred to a genetics clinic

• If you are referred to a genetics clinic, you may have to wait some time for your appointment.
• Being referred to a genetics clinic does not mean you will definitely have a genetic test.
• The first step is to look at your family history to see if cancer in your family may be caused by a BRCA gene alteration. 

• If you know there is a BRCA alteration in your family, you may or may not have inherited it.
• If you have inherited the BRCA alteration, you will be at increased risk of cancer. 
• You can choose to have a genetic test to see if you have inherited BRCA alteration or not.