A Cancer in the Family: Take Control of Your Genetic Inheritance
A Kirkus Best Book of 2016 

Oncologist and cancer gene hunter Theo Ross delivers the first authoritative, go-to for people facing a genetic predisposition for cancer

 
There are 13 million people with cancer in the United States, and it’s estimated that about 1.3 million of these cases are hereditary. Yet despite advanced training in cancer genetics and years of practicing medicine, Dr. Theo Ross was never certain whether the history of cancers in her family was simple bad luck or a sign that they were carriers of a cancer-causing genetic mutation. Then she was diagnosed with melanoma, and for someone with a dark complexion, melanoma made no sense. It turned out there was a genetic factor at work.
 
Using her own family’s story, the latest science of cancer genetics, and her experience as a practicing physician, Ross shows readers how to spot the patterns of inherited cancer, how to get tested for cancer-causing genes, and what to do if you have one. With a foreword by Siddartha Mukherjee, prize winning author of The Emperor of All Maladies, this will be the first authoritative, go-to for people facing inherited cancer, this book empowers readers to face their genetic heritage without fear and to make decisions that will keep them and their families healthy.
"1122003241"
A Cancer in the Family: Take Control of Your Genetic Inheritance
A Kirkus Best Book of 2016 

Oncologist and cancer gene hunter Theo Ross delivers the first authoritative, go-to for people facing a genetic predisposition for cancer

 
There are 13 million people with cancer in the United States, and it’s estimated that about 1.3 million of these cases are hereditary. Yet despite advanced training in cancer genetics and years of practicing medicine, Dr. Theo Ross was never certain whether the history of cancers in her family was simple bad luck or a sign that they were carriers of a cancer-causing genetic mutation. Then she was diagnosed with melanoma, and for someone with a dark complexion, melanoma made no sense. It turned out there was a genetic factor at work.
 
Using her own family’s story, the latest science of cancer genetics, and her experience as a practicing physician, Ross shows readers how to spot the patterns of inherited cancer, how to get tested for cancer-causing genes, and what to do if you have one. With a foreword by Siddartha Mukherjee, prize winning author of The Emperor of All Maladies, this will be the first authoritative, go-to for people facing inherited cancer, this book empowers readers to face their genetic heritage without fear and to make decisions that will keep them and their families healthy.
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A Cancer in the Family: Take Control of Your Genetic Inheritance

A Cancer in the Family: Take Control of Your Genetic Inheritance

A Cancer in the Family: Take Control of Your Genetic Inheritance

A Cancer in the Family: Take Control of Your Genetic Inheritance

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Overview

A Kirkus Best Book of 2016 

Oncologist and cancer gene hunter Theo Ross delivers the first authoritative, go-to for people facing a genetic predisposition for cancer

 
There are 13 million people with cancer in the United States, and it’s estimated that about 1.3 million of these cases are hereditary. Yet despite advanced training in cancer genetics and years of practicing medicine, Dr. Theo Ross was never certain whether the history of cancers in her family was simple bad luck or a sign that they were carriers of a cancer-causing genetic mutation. Then she was diagnosed with melanoma, and for someone with a dark complexion, melanoma made no sense. It turned out there was a genetic factor at work.
 
Using her own family’s story, the latest science of cancer genetics, and her experience as a practicing physician, Ross shows readers how to spot the patterns of inherited cancer, how to get tested for cancer-causing genes, and what to do if you have one. With a foreword by Siddartha Mukherjee, prize winning author of The Emperor of All Maladies, this will be the first authoritative, go-to for people facing inherited cancer, this book empowers readers to face their genetic heritage without fear and to make decisions that will keep them and their families healthy.

Product Details

ISBN-13: 9780698197893
Publisher: Penguin Publishing Group
Publication date: 02/02/2016
Sold by: Penguin Group
Format: eBook
Pages: 288
File size: 1 MB

About the Author

Theo Ross, M.D., Ph.D., is a professor of internal medicine and the director of the Cancer Genetics Program at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center. Ross is a leading researcher on cancer susceptibility genes, as well as a practitioner who specialized in treating breast cancer for more than a decade and now cares for all types of patients who have a family history of cancer. She is also a carrier of a cancer-causing mutation.

Read an Excerpt

Theo Ross, M.D., Ph.D., is a professor of internal medicine and the director of the Cancer Genetics Program at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center. Ross is a leading researcher on cancer susceptibility genes, as well as a practitioner who specialized in treating breast cancer for more than a decade and now cares for all types of patients who have a family history of cancer. She is also a carrier of a cancer-causing mutation.

Table of Contents

Foreword Siddhartha Mukherjee, M.D., Ph.D xiii

1 Knowledge that can save Your Life 1

Why Not "Just Get Tested"? 9

A Family History of Cancer Is a Powerful Tool for Better Health 13

2 The Double Helix: Biology isn't Destiny 17

Every Cancer Is Genetic 19

A Short (Very Short) Tutorial in Genetics 20

Inherited vs. Sporadic Cancer 22

Does Cancer Run in Your Family? Look for These Signs 25

Inherited Cancer Syndromes 27

Cancer and Family Secrets 29

Charting Your Family's Health History 35

3 Taking a Family History: Dealing with Silence, Dealing with Drama 39

Genogram to the Rescue 46

Fuzzy Facts: When the Family's Cancer Truth Is Lost to History 56

Secret Ethnic Histories 59

How to Learn about Your Genetic Inheritance When You're Adopted 67

The Best Time to See Your Doctor 70

4 Is Your Doctor Truthy? Are You? 72

(Truthy) Things Doctors Say about Inherited Cancer 74

When Medical Records Lie 81

HIPAA: It Helps More Than It Hurts 83

What about Me? What about You? How to Avoid Avoidance 86

5 Genetic Counseling, Genetic Testing, and Family Conversations 91

Do You Need Genetic Counseling? 92

How Genetic Counselors Can Help You 95

Get the Most from Your Genetic Counseling Appointment 100

What Happens during Genetic Testing 103

What about Direct-to-Consumer Genetic Tests? 105

Understanding the Results of a Genetic Test 105

Getting the News 111

We Need "Mystery Patients" to Help Us Understand the Genome 113

Effects on Your Insurance Policies and Employment 115

Telling Your Family about a Mutation in a Cancer Gene 116

6 How to Manage Your Cancer Risk When Information is Limited 121

Cancer Risk Management and the Powers It Brings 122

Risk Management Options for Common Family Cancer Syndromes 124

Difficulties in Decision Making 126

Tools for Resolving Decisional Conflict 138

7 Targeted Treatments for Cancer: Realities, Myths, Possibilities 147

What Are Targeted Therapies? 150

Hormonal Therapies 154

Kinase Inhibitors 157

PARP Inhibitors 159

Therapeutic Antibodies 162

Immune Therapies 163

Combined Therapies 166

How to Sift Hope from Hype 167

Why We Need Clinical Trials 171

What about Sequencing the Whole Genome of Your Germline or Tumor? 177

8 Science is a Group Project: Data Points and You 180

Privacy, Consent, and Good Data-Sharing 186

Let's Build Data-Sharing Plans for Cancer Genetics 189

What Families Can Do to Accelerate Cancer Research 192

Acknowledgments 197

Appendix 1 Inherited Cancer Syndromes 201

Appendix 2 Risk Management for Inherited Cancer Syndromes 223

Resources 253

Notes 267

Index 277

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