Ashkenazi lineage question

SchmoopieBear
SchmoopieBear Member Posts: 17
edited June 2021 in High Risk for Breast Cancer

I just learned that my Dad is 60.9% ashkenazi Jewish based on his 23andme results. I would gather that puts me at about 30% (without taking my Mom into account - she passed away about 11 years ago but her side of the family is not Jewish).

Does this percentage mean that I am at a greater risk of a genetic mutation or is there a certain “percent” that makes someone check the ashkenazi lineage box as yes versus no.

Thanks in advance.

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  • exbrnxgrl
    exbrnxgrl Member Posts: 12,424
    edited February 2021

    Hi,

    I can’t answer your question with certainty but would suggest that you ask for an appointment with a genetic counselor. They are very helpful in evaluating and explaining your personal risk for genetic mutations that are more common in Ashkenazi Jews. BTW, even among those of us with stronger Ashkenazi Jewish heritage, me for example, the overall number of genetically related breast cancers is still quite small. Take care.

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  • Snowflake888
    Snowflake888 Member Posts: 39
    edited February 2021

    I think it is something that should be considered but please note that my sisters and I are BRCA 2 and we’re not of ashkenazi descent. But, my father and all his siblings had cancer or died of cancer as well as some of my cousins. After my sister was diagnosed with breast cancer, we all got tested. I think you have to look more at family history. “Under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA), genetic counseling and BRCA testing for women with specific personal and/or family cancer history should be covered with no co-payment. ... Genetic testing for mutations other than BRCA1 and BRCA2 not covered under the ACA”. There are also some affordable labs tests that you can order online as well if you think it’s important.
    Just note, if your father is a carrier, you only have a fifty percent chance of getting that gene mutation. And I don’t know what percentage of people with ashkenazi heritage carry the mutation. Mathematically, your risks look pretty small. As far as checking the box for ashkenazi lineage, I would check with your doctor. Maybe...


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  • Beesie
    Beesie Member Posts: 12,240
    edited February 2021

    Approximately 2.5% of people of Ashkenazi descent are BRCA positive:

    BRCA And Ashkenazi Jews https://www.jnetics.org/hereditary_cancers/jewish_...


    .

    "How common are BRCA mutations in Ashkenazi Jews?

    It is estimated that around 1 in 40 people of Ashkenazi Jewish ancestry are BRCA positive relative to 1 in 300-400 in the general population. BRCA-associated cancers are therefore seen more frequently in Jewish people of Ashkenazi descent.

    The likelihood of an Ashkenazi Jew inheriting a BRCA mutation depends on a number of factors including:

    • The strength of their Ashkenazi ancestry -people with four Ashkenazi Jewish grandparents have a higher risk than those with mixed Ashkenazi Jewish and non-Ashkenazi Jewish ancestry.
    • The strength of their family history of breast, ovarian or prostate cancer – the number of family members who have developed cancer, the age at which they developed cancer and how closely related they are, are all contributing factors.
    • Whether they have blood relatives with known mutations in a BRCA gene."
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  • exbrnxgrl
    exbrnxgrl Member Posts: 12,424
    edited February 2021

    Snowflake,

    Given all the possibilities, talking to a genetic counselor is the best bet. By looking at family medical history as well as other factors such as ethnicity, a genetics counselor can determine if there is need for genetic testing. Again, with the currently known genetic mutations, the number of folks with genetically related bc is still quite small. Despite my ethnicity and a robust family history of cancers, I have no known genetic mutations

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  • Researchgal
    Researchgal Member Posts: 10
    edited June 2021

    I found out I'm BRCA1 recently and my dad's side of the family is Jewish but ironically the gene came from my mom's side, which is Armenian.

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  • wallycat
    wallycat Member Posts: 3,227
    edited June 2021

    My father was Ashkenazi Jewish; my mom was catholic Polish. Since I was dx before turning 50, my insurance paid for genetic testing. I had no BRCA mutations.

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  • DutchieGirl
    DutchieGirl Member Posts: 103
    edited June 2021

    I had so many factors against me - my mom had BC, as did her two sisters. My family is from the Netherlands where the BC rate is third highest in the world (behind Belgium and Luxemburg). And we have ashkenazi Jewish lineage on my dad’s side. I was tested for 17 gene mutations and….nothing. I still feel there must be a genetic component for me but they still need to isolate that gene.

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  • exbrnxgrl
    exbrnxgrl Member Posts: 12,424
    edited June 2021

    I hear you! I am as Ashkenazi as they come and have a grandmother who died from bc. My younger sister died at age 50, of a uterine sarcoma. I have had the full Ambry panel and have no known mutations but I am inclined to believe it just hasn’t been identified yet.

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