Genetic testing for BRCA1 and BRCA2

Progress in genetics has numerous implications for both nurse practitioners and those patients at risk for the hereditary diseases breast cancer and ovarian cancer. Nurse practitioners will be challenged to order and interpret genetic tests and take into consideration the legal, ethical, social, and familial implications.

Nurse practitioners need to be prepared to provide the necessary background information to patients, so that informed decision making by the patient is possible. This project provides guidelines for evaluating family history risk for inherited breast and ovarian cancer and discusses the implications for presymptomatic testing, carrier testing, and susceptibility testing of certain familial disorders. Guidelines for ordering BRCA1 and BRCA2 testing for breast cancer and the implications of these results are explored.

Unlike traditional medical testing performed to evaluate symptoms, genetic treatment is limited. Experts disagree whether genetic testing is justified in families with strong histories of certain disorders (Cho, Sanker, &Wolpe, 1999). For this reason, someone deciding whether to undergo genetic testing must weigh the medical benefits of testing against the psychological and social risks and benefits.

A reference pamphlet for nurse practitioners in ordering the genetic test for breast cancer is implemented in this scholarly project. Testing guidelines, patient counseling, clinical application of test results, and interpretation of test results are included in the pamphlet.