Should All Jewish Women Be Offered BRCA Mutation Screening?

A substantial proportion of Ashkenazi Jewish women carry BRCA1 or BRCA2 mutations, which places them at excess risk for breast and ovarian cancer. Canadian investigators ran an advertisement in a national newspaper to recruit self-identified Jewish women (age range, 25–80) in Ontario for a study of BRCA screening. Eligible respondents were asked to complete questionnaires that addressed personal and family medical histories and to provide blood or saliva samples for DNA testing for the three Jewish founder BRCA1 and BRCA2 mutations. Negative test results were communicated to participants by mail or telephone; a genetics counselor communicated positive results by phone and followed up with a letter and an invitation for in-person genetic cou…