A BC Cancer Breakthrough in Advancing Early Detection and Prevention in Hereditary Cancer
April 10, 2026
Found in Hereditary Cancer, Pancreatic Cancer
A groundbreaking made-in-B.C. blood test is transforming how families understand inherited cancer risk — eliminating unnecessary testing on one side of a family while bringing life-saving clarity to the other.
With BC Cancer Foundation support, BC Cancer scientists have developed a world-first technology, Parent-of-Origin-Aware Genomic Analysis (POAga) which can determine, with 98% accuracy, whether a cancer-causing gene mutation was inherited from a patient’s mother or father — using only a single blood sample.
Inherited mutations such as BRCA1 and BRCA2, which increase the risk of breast, ovarian, prostate and pancreatic cancer, account for about 10% of all cancers.
Until now, determining which side of a family carries a mutation has required testing multiple relatives on both sides — something that is often difficult or impossible if parents are no longer living, unwilling or unavailable to test, or biological family history is unknown, says Dr. Kasmintan Schrader, co-medical director of BC Cancer’s Hereditary Cancer Program.
POAga changes that.
“It’s the biggest advance in hereditary cancer testing technology in decades, and it will transform cancer prevention for generations.”
By pinpointing which parent a mutation came from, the test immediately focuses attention where it matters most, clarifying risk for one side of a family while relieving uncertainty, stress and worry for the other, and dramatically improving the efficiency of genetic screening across the health-care system.
In a pilot POAga study focused on pancreatic cancer, blood samples from just nine patients helped determine hereditary risk for 188 extended relatives.
For relatives who may carry the mutation, this insight enables access to genetic testing, earlier screening and preventive care that can stop cancer before it starts.
Linda Hopkins’ story
POAga predicted Linda's pancreatic cancer came from her mother's side.
For Linda Hopkins, POAga provided long-awaited clarity and a clear path forward.
Linda’s sister was already facing ovarian cancer when Linda was diagnosed with early stage pancreatic cancer. “Between my sister and I, for two years it was a mess,” she says.
“I went from being a very active person to learning that I had pancreatic cancer as well as a gene mutation that put me and my family at greater risk. I developed a lot of anxiety, which I had never had in my life.”
It didn’t come as a complete surprise to Linda when she learned she carried the BRCA2 mutation, as her sister had already tested positive.
But POAga predicted that the mutation came from her mother — who had passed away years earlier — allowing Linda to alert relatives on that side of the family so they can pursue genetic testing and earlier screening.
Linda’s genetic counsellor at BC Cancer offered to contact her Canadian relatives on her mother’s side. And Linda has also reached out to family in Ireland to let them know they, too, could face an elevated risk of developing cancer.
This knowledge is powerful, because early detection can save lives. As it did with Linda. After surgery to remove her pancreas and six months of chemotherapy, Linda is now, incredibly, cancer-free.
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