“With donor support, BC Cancer can be one of the first in the world to test upfront genetic screening that could eliminate a diagnosis in the first place.”
– Dr. Kasmintan Schrader, co-director, BC Cancer Hereditary Cancer Program
About 10 percent of cancers are hereditary, and happen when a gene mutation that increases cancer risk is passed down from a parent to a child. The most common inherited mutations are BRCA1, BRCA2 and Lynch Syndrome.
BC Cancer’s Hereditary Cancer Program, led by Medical Geneticist Dr. Kasmintan Schrader and Medical Oncologist Dr. Sophie Sun, runs genetic testing on tumours to see if the patient’s family is at risk of cancer. Pivotal for overall disease prevention, this program also allows for faster diagnosis before the cancer is caught too late.
To date, the HCP team has:
While there continues to be significant progress, work continues on two pilot programs:
The Large Scale Group Genetic Counselling Pilot that aims to:
The Automation and Digitization Pilot that aims to:
“With donor support, BC Cancer can be one of the first in the world to test upfront genetic screening that could eliminate a diagnosis in the first place.”
– Dr. Kasmintan Schrader, co-director, BC Cancer Hereditary Cancer Program
With your help, BC CAN stop cancer in it’s tracks