Prophylactic mastectomy is controversial and involves a number of ethical and emotional issues. But some women find it extremely effective in managing breast cancer risk. Getting rid of some parts of your body to prevent a disease from occurring is no doubt an extreme measure and therefore one should carefully weigh the pros and cons before undergoing the surgery. Here is how Prophylactic mastectomy helps prevent breast cancer in women, who are predisposed to the disease either due to strong family history of the disease or due to their genetic mutations.
The high risk women may go for genetic cancer testing to know whether they have BRCA1 and BRCA2 mutations. A positive test result means that a person has an increased risk of developing breast cancer and ovarian cancer in their lifetime. However, a positive test result only tells that certain person has an increased risk of developing breast or ovarian cancer or that the person’s risk is higher as compared to general population. It can, neither tell for sure that the person will develop the disease, nor can it tell how and when the person will develop the disease. And most importantly, not all women born with harmful genetic mutation will develop breast or ovarian cancer in their lifetime.
