Paternal Side of Family Risk

MomOf3inAL · February 2011

So does paternal side of family increase risk or not? So much that I have read contradicts whether or not the paternal side of the family carries the risk in inheriting the BC mutations. The reason I am concerned is that my father's sister was diagnosed at 40, and had BC again in the opposite breast several years later. My father's mother died of ovarian cancer at 71. When she was diagnosed she realized that one of her aunts died of this as well. Some doctors want to know about both sides; others seem to take the paternal family history less seriously. Since so many of you have looked into the topic of BC risk in depth, I would like to hear your experince on this topic. Thanks!

Anonymous · February 2011

yes, risk from your father's side is equally important. Your physician should know all your history from both sides, especially any breast or ovarian cancer.

anne

Kezzie62 · February 2011

Paternal risk is just as important... I was found to have a mutation of unknown significance on my paternal DNA, My half sister (diffrent mothers same father) also has the same mutation. There is nobody on my mothers side of the family with BC and she has 5 sisters and 4 aunts. On my fathers side there is 8 women who have all had/has BC 5 are dead. My onc said I was very high risk..

Kezzie

katkel · February 2011

Yes, to echo what others have said. I am BRCA1 positive. My Mom had the testing done also and was negative. We know for certainty that my mutation came from my Dad's side. He was one of four sons, so I was the first (as far as we know) where BC presented itself.

SarahsMom · February 2011

Getting on the bandwagon here - my doctor tells me yes, it does matter. In his words (well, I will try, anyhow!) the reason it matters is because predicting hereditary impact on breast cancer (who will/won't be affected) is an imperfect science. (As we all know!) Anyhow, because they don't know for sure how it might affect, they factor it in as a possibility because they can't absolutely rule it out.

He also rattled off a list of other weird things that happen in breast disease like a woman having mastistis when she is not nursing or lactating.

I find it very unsettling that it's 2011 and with all of our technology, breast cancer and issues remain such a mystery.

MomOf3inAL · February 2011

Thanks so much! I am awaiting an excisional biospy of a mass next Wednesday. Through the whole diagnostic process I have been given the impression by a few different people that father's side isn't important. For example, when the person at the breat center was asking about family history of BC I felt like she discounted paternal side and just put it in the records just in case. Then the mammo/us tech saw the info in there and mentioned it and when i said my father's sister had bc she kind of gave me the impression that it wasn't a big deal. Granted, I realize neither of these people were experts, but I just wondered if I was making an issue out of it for nothing. There are limited women on that side (the sister that had bc was my father's only sister; my grandmother only had one sister as well). However, the fact that my aunt had it so young and that had another cancer in the other breast makes me a little worried. Also, while that is the only known case of bc, the fact that ovarian cancer is also there and is linked makes me wonder if there is a mutation. I will definitely discuss this with my dr. in the future.

katkel · February 2011

MomOf3...

I absolutely remember that same feeling in the beginning. Since there had been no cancer on my Mom's side my primary doctor initially pooh-poohed my extremely large lump! Even my very esteemed oncologist at Johns Hopkins was shocked when the test came back as positive for me, but negative for my Mom.

Yes, discuss this with your Doctor. I was so glad I had the testing done, as then I had my other breast removed, and a hysterectomy. I also will encourage that my sons have the testing when they get older, especially if/when they are thinking of starting a family.

Good luck with everything!

Kathy

MomOf3inAL · February 2011

Thanks Kathy! I thought about approaching my aunt about being tested. She doesn't have any daughters but her sons have daughters and it might be a benefit to them, too. I am of the mindset that I would just want to know. i am not the type that would go off the deep end with worry if I tested positive for the mutation, but I would want the opportunity to make appropriate choices.

Alpal · February 2011

I have a male friend who was diagnosed with BC at age 58. Because he is of Ashkenazim (sp?) Jewish descent, he was tested for BRCA and the results were positive. His only child a 20 something year old daughter has also tested positive. I understand that years ago no one understood the paternal link but I am appalled that health care workers today don't understand this.

Issymom · February 2011

Paternal side is ABSOLUTELY important. I knew my paternal grandmother died of BC at age 52. Because of it being on my dad's side and over 50 (barely), no doctor considered me being at risk. Fortunately, I consistently had mammograms and in Nov 2009, I was diagnosed with TNBC. Because it was TN, I was tested and found out I was BRCA1+. My dad and my sister were both tested and both were determined to be positive. With the BRCA mutation, doctors have to consider paternal history.

2z54 · February 2011

I'm proof that the paternal side is just as important in determining bc risk as the maternal side. Every one of the women on my father's side (2 aunts and my grandmother) died of bc. But, years ago (When I was in my 20s and 30s - now I'm 56!) all of my doctors told me not to be concerned because it wasn't on my maternal side.

Fortunately, bc doctors know better these days and my surgeons and onc all agreed that there was most probably a genetic component to my bc. Also being of Ashkenazi decent, I had genetic testing done but it was negative for the BRAC mutation. The genetic counselor said that doesn't mean that my bc wasn't genetic - just that perhaps that marker hasn't been found yet.

So, it IS important to consider both sides of your family tree when considering your risk for bc, and probably all diseases.

SarahsMom · February 2011

It drives me crazy too - they always ask "mother, sisters, daughter" - well I don't have any sisters, I started having children late and my daughter is only 12, and my mom never had BC (but had a lumpectomy).

But....Mom's older sister had a double mastectomy; her younger sister died of bone cancer; and her mother had a mastectomy. My Dad's mom died from ovarian cancer. But to some doctors, none of this counts as family history.

Wouldn't it all "count" if it we were talking about heart disease?

Fortunately to my new doctor, my family history does count!! I fired my old doctor :-)

pupfoster1 · February 2011

Well that's just great and I figured as much. I'm adopted and just found my birthmother a couple years ago. She's always been hesitant about giving me info on my birthfather but now I think I will have to get on her about him. On her side my maternal Aunt is a bc survivor.

Thanks ladies,

Sharon

PeregrineEllie · March 2011

Yes, father's side increases risk, or at least it can.

No doctor had ever asked if anyone in my father's family had breast cancer so I didn't think it did ...

That is, until I was diagnosed at 30, tested positive for BRCA2, found out my grandmother (paternal) had breast cancer in her 30s, and her mother died from it in her 40s, and a paternal cousin has it at 34.

Well, I think I'm glad I know now. But I think it's very overlooked!

CandDsMom · March 2011

Yep - the father's side counts. I am another one.

My paternal aunt (dx locally advanced dz at age 28, deceased age 32) and, strangely, 3 of my paternal grandmother's sisters all postmenopausal (but not my paternal grandmother!)

Everyone poo-poo'd me needing screening before age 40, but my parents really pushed me into it. I had my first screening at age 32 (negative), missed age 33 due to pregnancy and had my second one at age 34 - ER PR negative multifocal multicentric DCIS. 95% of which was mammogram occult. I am BRCA negative but my onc feels strongly that I got something through the paternal line.

So, the paternal line is also important. BC sucks!

shells43 · March 2011

Me too, my paternal aunt that I've never met had BC in her 50's. She does not have children. I had to ask my bio-Dad for a family history because no one on my Mom's side ever had BC. Lucky me!

Paternal Side of Family Risk

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