Psychosocial and Clinical Factors Associated with Family Communication of Cancer Genetic Test Results among Women Diagnosed with Breast Cancer at a Young Age

We examined psychosocial and clinical factors associated with communication of genetic test results within families. Women (N = 1080) diagnosed with breast cancer at age 40 or younger completed an online survey; 920 women that reported prior cancer genetic testing were included in analysis. We examined the proportion of immediate family members to whom they communicated genetic test results, and built multivariable regr ession models to examine clinical and psychosocial variables associated with the proportion score. Participants were most likely to communicate test results to their mother (83 %) and least likely to their son (45 %). Participants who carried aBRCA mutation (OR  = 1.34; 95 % CI = 1.06, 1.70), had higher interest in genomic information (OR = 1.55; 95 % CI = 1.26, 1.91) and lower genetic worry (OR = 0.91; 95 % CI = 0.86, 0.96) communicated genetic test results to a greater proportion of their immediate family members. Participants with aBRCA1/2 mutation shared their genetic test results with more male family members (OR  = 1.72; 95 % CI = 1.02, 2.89). Our findings suggest that patients with high worry about genetic risks, low interest in genomic information, or receive a negative genetic test result will likely need additional support to encourage family communication.
Source: Journal of Genetic Counseling - Category: Genetics & Stem Cells Source Type: research