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Genetic Testing and Education
Is Cancer In Your Genes?
The Wadley Cancer Treatment Center has broadened its scope of services to include genetic counseling and testing. The latest scientific research and discoveries in cancer prevention are now being made in genetics. If a risk of cancer runs in your family, genetic testing may be an important step for you to consider.
"Genetic testing can give you answers about your risk of inherited cancers by analyzing your genes for mutations," explains Tammy McKamie, RN, OCN, and Certified Cancer Genetics Educator at Wadley. "The results will help you make informed decisions about your options for early cancer detection and risk reduction. Even if you’ve already been diagnosed with cancer, genetic testing can provide important information about your risk for a second cancer, which also can help your physician determine your future medical management."
Genetic testing also provides information that is important to your family members, especially close relatives."If you have inherited gene mutations that could cause cancer, there is a 50% chance that your parents, brothers, sisters, or your children might have these mutations as well," says McKamie. "Following genetic testing, some relatives may discover that they did not inherit the mutation and are not at increased risk for cancer, even if there is a family history of cancer."
Knowing your family history is a very important first step, but genetic testing provides a more accurate assessment of your inherited risk for cancer.
For further information on genetic testing or for an appointment to receive a cancer risk assessment, please call the Wadley Cancer Treatment Center at (903) 798-7240.
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