I recently learned that people with one or more Jewish grandparents could be at greater risk of carrying the BRAC gene for different types of cancers (mostly breast, ovarian and pancreatic) and the NHS has a specific screening programme to see if you have the gene or not.
So if you were in this category, would you want to be tested?
For context, I'm of Ashkenazi descent (paternal grandmother) but to my knowledge there's no history of cancer on that side of the family. I am looking into the idea of testing but if I did and it was positive, what would I even do with that information? I tend to be a worrier/over-thinker at the best of times!
If it was positive, it would open me up more regular testing from the NHS and maybe even be a pathway to surgical interventions but then I just think would it be better to not know and instead keep a close eye on my health?
So many questions and thoughts really! If you were in this higher risk category, would you want to know?