Joe Scholten’s sister had already beaten breast cancer and was battling ovarian cancer when she tested positive for a genetic mutation linked to both. An estimated 12 percent of women will develop breast cancer during their lifetimes, according to the National Cancer Institute. Bill Rotter only learned he had a BRCA genetic mutation after being diagnosed with breast cancer. Men’s risk of getting breast cancer, generally one in 1,000, rises to about 7 percent for BRCA2 mutation carriers. A male first cousin he had never met died of breast cancer in his 30s.

Source: Washington Post May 15, 2016 17:51 UTC