Should I test so many years later?

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grayson
grayson Member Posts: 12
edited June 2014 in Genetic Testing

I was dx with bc when i was 30.  Now I'm 60. my new oncologist wants me to have gene testing and i'm wondering why no one mentioned this to me before and if it's important to do now?  I've heard that my adult children may be denied life insurance if i am dx with the breast cancer genes.  Thoughts?

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  • Dabulls23
    Dabulls23 Member Posts: 30
    edited December 2010

    Grayson how can your test results on BRCA1-2 be used in the deciding factor for your children getting Life Insurance...Your  test results are your decision whether to share with your kids or not..When I was DX with BC I went ahead with Genetic test..Thank god I was not the carrier..

    Isn't this information confidential between you and your DR-HMO?? 

    How would insurance company know what is on your med records? 

    May be others have more input.. 

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  • Leah_S
    Leah_S Member Posts: 8,458
    edited December 2010

    Grayson, is there a strong family history of bc? Do your kids want the results?

    I seem to remember reading here that the law states that insurance companies can't deny coverage due to genetic predisposition to disease but I might not have understood properly. Since it doesn't affect me (live outside US) I didn't look into it carefully.

    All the best.

    Leah

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  • Mutd
    Mutd Member Posts: 148
    edited December 2010

    Most probably you have a sister or a daughter who doesn't have cancer, but who is concerned about her risk. The best way to gauge it is to test the highest-risk person in the family first (that would be you since you already had cancer, and at a very early age).

    If there is a mutation found, then all they will need to do is to test for just that one mutation. Insurance will cover testing in healthy relatives when there is a mutation in the family. And if they are negative for the familial mutation, that's the end of story.

    Your doctor may also be concerned about your own risk of ovarian cancer.

    Both family history and mutation status may affect life insurance, although most insurance companies don't even ask about it. But they allowed to ask, and so it may be wise to get a life policy before testing. Possibly long term disability too. But this would be your relatives' problem to worry about when they decide to get tested. For yourself, it shouldn't really matter. A breast cancer, and so young, is all a life insurer needs to know if they want to put you in a high risk group. 

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