I would eventually have hugely impactful personal choices to make. Not only would this determine how I sought preventative treatment for my own sake, but I’d be responsible for preventing my children from experiencing the same pain I had.
In the decades since my mother’s diagnosis, we’ve made a lot of progress in addressing and treating breast cancer. Patients have many more options for reducing their risk and managing their cancer successfully. In a broader sense, our role in our own healthcare in general has also changed. We now have access to much more information than before, and tools that help us engage with our own data, results and care in real time. One critical avenue is genetic testing. There is no medical data more personalized than this, and the knowledge of human genomics is constantly expanding. As time passes, experts only learn more about our health as it relates to our genes.
When a patient seeks care or treatment today, family history often falls by the wayside in the midst of all the other factors to be considered. But in fact there is so much essential information to be found in this history, and the amount we can learn from genetic testing has grown exponentially. Precision medicine is distinctive in that it’s entirely accessible and unique to patients. We decide whether we receive this information about ourselves, when to seek it and how we choose to use it.
In my own case, I was aware of genetic testing as an option and prepared to take action on it at the right moment. A close family friend who was also a clinician had advised me to seriously consider what I would do with the information I learned and whether having the information would be helpful at that particular stage of my life. Although I was always aware of my risk for breast cancer, I knew I wanted to have children, and chose to delay even testing for that risk until after they were born. Then I was ready to use whatever was available to confirm my prognosis and take aggressive preventative measures. Genetic testing was my first step. It was my own information, its scope had expanded significantly in the time I’d waited, and I was in control.
I had considered this, and I did pursue a genetic test after being diagnosed with a different medical issue. When I learned I had tested positive for BRCA 2, I had no doubt what to do. I assured my provider that I would pursue prophylactic surgery, and in the course of treatment also avoid the drug that had been the catalyst for my mother’s death. Once again, this was my own choice, and family members used their own information to take their own care paths. But I was, and remain, completely satisfied with the course I took. The possibility of this specific cancer is gone and the care options are normalized for my children. By proactively using precision medicine, I was empowered to change the direction of my health for the better and take control of my own future.
All patients today have the power to engage with their health the same way. As we’re increasingly plugged into our care through portals, telehealth options and smart wearable devices, we’re given more resources to act as our own care providers. Especially with precision medicine, which provides a personal roadmap for each of us, we work with our whole team of providers to determine the best course of care for ourselves. Understanding our unique risks and predispositions in the long run, and with the tools to track our data day to day, we have the power to take control of our health for our entire lives.
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