Rust - getting your tumour genetically profiled is different from seeing if you have the BRCA gene.
The tumour's genetic profile can tell you, with a lot more accuracy, which chemotherapy regimen is going to be more successful in killing the cancer. So it's a bit less trial and error - you have more data and stats to go on to pick your treatment plan in the first place, because the oncologist will be able to see what the structure of your tumour is, and based on past studies, see which chemos have had more success treating that genetic make up. Without it, the oncologist can still do the job (as most still do, due to the test being expensive and not covered in a lot of cases), but with it they just have more knowledge at the beginning, so don't have to test to see if things work as much - they can reduce the number of options to those most likely to work, straight from the off.
The BRCA gene test is to see if you have the genetic mutation (a simple blood test) which shows you are more at risk of developing breast cancer (and ovarian cancer too) and thus can give you more help in deciding to have a double vs. a single MX, and also whether to have your ovaries removed, as well as other implications (like any daughters' increased chances of having the gene too, to spark extra screening etc). Some clinical trials need you to be BRCA positive.
Fasting has been shown to shrink tumours in mice, and is starting clinical trials in humans soon. It's not something you would do instead of more established methods of treating cancer, but I read enough into it to make me feel that doing a 14 day fast after my treatment had been completed, that it couldn't do any harm, and would actually make me lose the chemo weight I had put on, as well as hopefully starve any stray cancer cells which were still in my body.
I went private, mainly because I lived in Rome and I didn't want to access the Italian public health system. It does give you access to some drugs not available on the NHS as they don't have to go through the same hurdles with NICE guidelines - once a drug is approved (not sure if it is FDA or other - Amber will know) they (BUPA or similar) can use it, which is sometimes 12-18 months earlier than the NHS due to the extra hoops the NHS have to jump through before it is cleared for patient use. BUT. In general, I think we all get the same thing, more or less, it's more about waiting times, waiting rooms being nicer, chemo wards being more private etc.