Mammographic Screening for BRCA-Mutation Carriers

Mammographic screening is recommended for women as young as 25 who have BRCA mutations. However, recent findings suggest that BRCA-mutation carriers, particularly younger women, have higher risk for breast cancer after radiation exposure than do non-BRCA carriers (Breast Cancer Res 2007; 9:R26 and J Clin Oncol 2006; 24:3361).

Now, to estimate risk for radiation-induced breast cancer mortality among young BRCA carriers, investigators created a relative-risk model based on data from other cohorts exposed to levels of radiation similar to those used in mammographic screening (i.e., women who underwent multiple fluoroscopies and children who received thymic irradiation; Radiat Res 2002; 158:220).The authors assumed that risk for radiation-induce…