Molecular genetic testing in hereditary breast cancer

Abstract

Breast cancer is one of the most common cancers in the world. The incidence in Malta is around 94 per 100,000 population. I Breast cancer is a complex and heterogeneous disease caused by the interaction of various genetic and environmental factors. The identification of breast cancer causative genes has been an ongoing process both because of the magnitude of the problem and as an opportunity to reduce the public health impact of the disease, as well as the utilisation of breast cancer as a model to study the molecular basis of cancer. Though breast cancer that clusters in families is not infrequent, hereditary causes are only responsible for 15-20% of these cases.2 Other factors that can be correlated with familial clusters include localised environmental factors (carcinogens), culturally motivated behaviour that can alter risk factors such as age of first born and socioeconomic influences that could for example influence dietary habits.