Shannen Doherty dead

Breast cancer: when you should test your genes

Avoid the risk of breast cancer with regular check-ups.

(Bild: stock.adobe.com, Krone KREATIV)

One in eight women will develop breast cancer in the course of their lives - like actress Shannen Doherty, who has now succumbed to her illness, or Christina "Mausi" Lugner, as has been known since a "Krone" interview. In around one in ten patients, the cause of the disease is a change in the BRCA1 or BRCA2 gene. When you should have a genetic test.

If you carry this gene, you are at high risk of breast and ovarian cancer. Incidentally, men also have these gene mutations. Although they can also develop breast tumors, they are more likely to develop prostate and pancreatic cancer. Here you can read about the options for detecting the disease in good time, preventing it and, if it does develop, finding the right treatment.