Risk-reducing salpingectomy with delayed oophorectomy to prevent ovarian cancer in women with an increased inherited risk: insights into an alternative strategy.

Epithelial ovarian cancer (EOC) is the most lethal type of gynaecological cancer, due to lack of effective screening possibilities and because the disease tends to metastasize before onset of symptoms. Women with an increased inherited risk for EOC are advised to undergo a risk-reducing salpingo-oophorectomy (RRSO), which decreases their EOC risk by 96% when performed within guideline ages. However, it also induces premature menopause, which has harmful consequences.

Men with metastatic prostate cancer carrying a pathogenic germline variant in breast cancer genes: disclosure of genetic test results to relatives.

Some patients with metastatic prostate cancer carry a pathogenic germline variant (PV) in a gene, that is mainly associated with an increased risk of breast cancer in women. If they test positive for such a PV, prostate cancer patients are encouraged to disclose the genetic test result to relatives who are at risk in case the carrier status changes the relatives' medical care. Our study aimed to investigate how men who learned they carry a PV in BRCA1, BRCA2, PALB2, CHEK2 or ATM disclosed their carrier status to at-risk relatives and to assess the possible psychological burden for the carrier and their perception of the burden for relatives.

The heterogeneous cancer phenotype of individuals with biallelic germline pathogenic variants in CHEK2.

Purpose: Females with biallelic CHEK2 germline pathogenic variants (gPVs) more often develop multiple breast cancers than individuals with monoallelic CHEK2 gPVs. This study is aimed at expanding the knowledge on the occurrence of other malignancies.

Methods: Exome sequencing of individuals who developed multiple primary malignancies identified 3 individuals with the CHEK2 (NM_007194.

Contraceptives and cancer risks in BRCA1/2 pathogenic variant carriers: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

Background: Increasing numbers of BReast CAncer (BRCA) 1 or 2 pathogenic variant (PV) carriers, who have an inherited predisposition to breast and ovarian cancer, are being identified. Among these women, data regarding the effects of contraception on cancer risks are unclear and various guidelines provide various recommendations.

Objective And Rationale: We aim to optimize counselling regarding contraception for BRCA1/2-PV carriers.

Survival of BRCA1/BRCA2-associated pT1 breast cancer patients, a cohort study.

Purpose: Intensive screening in BRCA1/2 mutation carriers aims to improve breast cancer (BC) prognosis. Our aim is to clarify the prognostic impact of tumor size in BRCA mutation carriers with a pT1 BC, which is currently unclear. We are especially interested in differences between pT1a, pT1b, and pT1c regarding the prognosis of node-negative breast cancer, the effect of chemotherapy, and the prevalence of lymph node involvement.

The predictive ability of the 313 variant-based polygenic risk score for contralateral breast cancer risk prediction in women of European ancestry with a heterozygous BRCA1 or BRCA2 pathogenic variant.

Purpose: To evaluate the association between a previously published 313 variant-based breast cancer (BC) polygenic risk score (PRS) and contralateral breast cancer (CBC) risk, in BRCA1 and BRCA2 pathogenic variant heterozygotes.

Methods: We included women of European ancestry with a prevalent first primary invasive BC (BRCA1 = 6,591 with 1,402 prevalent CBC cases; BRCA2 = 4,208 with 647 prevalent CBC cases) from the Consortium of Investigators of Modifiers of BRCA1/2 (CIMBA), a large international retrospective series. Cox regression analysis was performed to assess the association between overall and ER-specific PRS and CBC risk.

Breast Cancer Polygenic Risk Score and Contralateral Breast Cancer Risk.

Previous research has shown that polygenic risk scores (PRSs) can be used to stratify women according to their risk of developing primary invasive breast cancer. This study aimed to evaluate the association between a recently validated PRS of 313 germline variants (PRS) and contralateral breast cancer (CBC) risk. We included 56,068 women of European ancestry diagnosed with first invasive breast cancer from 1990 onward with follow-up from the Breast Cancer Association Consortium.

Survival after bilateral risk-reducing mastectomy in healthy BRCA1 and BRCA2 mutation carriers.

Background: In healthy BRCA1/2 mutation carriers, bilateral risk-reducing mastectomy (BRRM) strongly reduces the risk of developing breast cancer (BC); however, no clear survival benefit of BRRM over BC surveillance has been reported yet.

Methods: In this Dutch multicenter cohort study, we used multivariable Cox models with BRRM as a time-dependent covariable to estimate the associations between BRRM and the overall and BC-specific mortality rates, separately for BRCA1 and BRCA2 mutation carriers.

Results: During a mean follow-up of 10.

Mendelian randomisation study of height and body mass index as modifiers of ovarian cancer risk in 22,588 BRCA1 and BRCA2 mutation carriers.

Background: Height and body mass index (BMI) are associated with higher ovarian cancer risk in the general population, but whether such associations exist among BRCA1/2 mutation carriers is unknown.

Methods: We applied a Mendelian randomisation approach to examine height/BMI with ovarian cancer risk using the Consortium of Investigators for the Modifiers of BRCA1/2 (CIMBA) data set, comprising 14,676 BRCA1 and 7912 BRCA2 mutation carriers, with 2923 ovarian cancer cases. We created a height genetic score (height-GS) using 586 height-associated variants and a BMI genetic score (BMI-GS) using 93 BMI-associated variants.

Genetic counseling of patients with ovarian carcinoma: acceptance, timing, and psychological wellbeing.

The new Dutch guidelines on hereditary and familial ovarian carcinoma recommend genetic testing of all patients with epithelial ovarian cancer (EOC). With this study, we aimed to obtain insight into (1) the acceptance and timing of the offer of genetic counseling in women with EOC, (2) reasons for accepting or declining genetic counseling, and (3) psychological differences between women who did and did not have genetic counseling. A multicenter questionnaire survey was performed in patients with EOC in four Dutch oncology centers.

Universal Tumor DNA BRCA1/2 Testing of Ovarian Cancer: Prescreening PARPi Treatment and Genetic Predisposition.

Background: Women with epithelial ovarian cancer (OC) have a higher chance to benefit from poly (ADP-ribose) polymerase inhibitor (PARPi) therapy if their tumor has a somatic or hereditary BRCA1/2 pathogenic variant. Current guidelines advise BRCA1/2 genetic predisposition testing for all OC patients, though this does not detect somatic variants. We assessed the feasibility of a workflow for universal tumor DNA BRCA1/2 testing of all newly diagnosed OC patients as a prescreen for PARPi treatment and cancer predisposition testing.

Online decision support for persons having a genetic predisposition to cancer and their partners during reproductive decision-making.

A nationwide pretest-posttest study was conducted in all clinical genetic centres in the Netherlands, to evaluate the effects of an online decision aid to support persons who have a genetic predisposition to cancer and their partners in making an informed decision regarding reproductive options. Main outcomes (decisional conflict, knowledge, realistic expectations, level of deliberation, and decision self-efficacy) were measured before use (T0), immediately after use (T1), and at 2 weeks (T2) after use of the decision aid. Paired sample t tests were used to compute differences between the first and subsequent measurements.

TP53 germline mutation testing in early-onset breast cancer: findings from a nationwide cohort.

Early-onset breast cancer may be due to Li-Fraumeni Syndrome (LFS). Current national and international guidelines recommend that TP53 genetic testing should be considered for women with breast cancer diagnosed before the age of 31 years. However, large studies investigating TP53 mutation prevalence in this population are scarce.

Height and Body Mass Index as Modifiers of Breast Cancer Risk in BRCA1/2 Mutation Carriers: A Mendelian Randomization Study.

Background: BRCA1/2 mutations confer high lifetime risk of breast cancer, although other factors may modify this risk. Whether height or body mass index (BMI) modifies breast cancer risk in BRCA1/2 mutation carriers remains unclear.

Methods: We used Mendelian randomization approaches to evaluate the association of height and BMI on breast cancer risk, using data from the Consortium of Investigators of Modifiers of BRCA1/2 with 14 676 BRCA1 and 7912 BRCA2 mutation carriers, including 11 451 cases of breast cancer.

Ovarian stimulation for IVF and risk of primary breast cancer in BRCA1/2 mutation carriers.

Background: The effect of in vitro fertilisation (IVF) on breast cancer risk for BRCA1/2 mutation carriers is rarely examined. As carriers may increasingly undergo IVF as part of preimplantation genetic diagnosis (PGD), we examined the impact of ovarian stimulation for IVF on breast cancer risk in BRCA1/2 mutation carriers.

Methods: The study population consisted of 1550 BRCA1 and 964 BRCA2 mutation carriers, derived from the nationwide HEBON study and the nationwide PGD registry.

The development of an online decision aid to support persons having a genetic predisposition to cancer and their partners during reproductive decision-making: a usability and pilot study.

An online decision aid to support persons having a genetic predisposition to cancer and their partners during reproductive decision-making was developed. A two-phase usability test was conducted among 12 couples (N = 22; 2 persons participated without their partner) at risk for hereditary cancer and 15 health care providers. Couples and health care providers expressed similar suggestions for improvements, and evaluated the modified decision aid as acceptable, easy to use, and comprehensible.

Identification of ten variants associated with risk of estrogen-receptor-negative breast cancer.

Most common breast cancer susceptibility variants have been identified through genome-wide association studies (GWAS) of predominantly estrogen receptor (ER)-positive disease. We conducted a GWAS using 21,468 ER-negative cases and 100,594 controls combined with 18,908 BRCA1 mutation carriers (9,414 with breast cancer), all of European origin. We identified independent associations at P < 5 × 10 with ten variants at nine new loci.

Unraveling genetic predisposition to familial or early onset gastric cancer using germline whole-exome sequencing.

Recognition of individuals with a genetic predisposition to gastric cancer (GC) enables preventive measures. However, the underlying cause of genetic susceptibility to gastric cancer remains largely unexplained. We performed germline whole-exome sequencing on leukocyte DNA of 54 patients from 53 families with genetically unexplained diffuse-type and intestinal-type GC to identify novel GC-predisposing candidate genes.

Risks of Breast, Ovarian, and Contralateral Breast Cancer for BRCA1 and BRCA2 Mutation Carriers.

Importance: The clinical management of BRCA1 and BRCA2 mutation carriers requires accurate, prospective cancer risk estimates.

Objectives: To estimate age-specific risks of breast, ovarian, and contralateral breast cancer for mutation carriers and to evaluate risk modification by family cancer history and mutation location.

Design, Setting, And Participants: Prospective cohort study of 6036 BRCA1 and 3820 BRCA2 female carriers (5046 unaffected and 4810 with breast or ovarian cancer or both at baseline) recruited in 1997-2011 through the International BRCA1/2 Carrier Cohort Study, the Breast Cancer Family Registry and the Kathleen Cuningham Foundation Consortium for Research into Familial Breast Cancer, with ascertainment through family clinics (94%) and population-based studies (6%).

Awareness and attitude regarding reproductive options of persons carrying a BRCA mutation and their partners.

Study Question: To what extent are BRCA mutation carriers and their partners in the Netherlands aware about preimplantation genetic diagnosis (PGD) and prenatal diagnosis (PND) as reproductive options and what is their attitude towards these options?

Summary Answer: Awareness of PGD (66%) and PND (61%) among BRCA mutation carriers and their partners is relatively high and 80% and 26%, respectively, of BRCA carriers and their partners find offering PGD and PND for hereditary breast and ovarian cancer (HBOC) acceptable.

What Is Known Already: Internationally, awareness of PGD among persons with a genetic cancer predisposition appears to be relatively low (35%) and although acceptability is generally high (71%), only a small proportion of mutation carriers would consider using PGD (36%). However, for HBOC, there are no studies available that investigated the perspective of individuals with a confirmed BRCA1/2 mutation and their partners about PGD and PND including demographic and medical correlates of awareness and acceptability.

Association of breast cancer risk in BRCA1 and BRCA2 mutation carriers with genetic variants showing differential allelic expression: identification of a modifier of breast cancer risk at locus 11q22.3.

Purpose: Cis-acting regulatory SNPs resulting in differential allelic expression (DAE) may, in part, explain the underlying phenotypic variation associated with many complex diseases. To investigate whether common variants associated with DAE were involved in breast cancer susceptibility among BRCA1 and BRCA2 mutation carriers, a list of 175 genes was developed based of their involvement in cancer-related pathways.

Methods: Using data from a genome-wide map of SNPs associated with allelic expression, we assessed the association of ~320 SNPs located in the vicinity of these genes with breast and ovarian cancer risks in 15,252 BRCA1 and 8211 BRCA2 mutation carriers ascertained from 54 studies participating in the Consortium of Investigators of Modifiers of BRCA1/2.

Germline BRCA1/2 mutation testing is indicated in every patient with epithelial ovarian cancer: A systematic review.

The presence of a germline BRCA1/2 mutation improves options for tailored risk-reducing strategies and treatment in both breast and ovarian cancer patients and their relatives. Currently, referral for germline BRCA1/2 mutation testing of women with epithelial ovarian cancer (EOC) varies widely, based on different criteria, such as age of onset, family history of breast and/or ovarian cancer and histological type of EOC. The overall probability of a germline BRCA1/2 mutation in women with EOC is above 10%, and a substantial part of the germline BRCA1/2 mutation carriers is missed when applying these criteria for referral.

Identification of Novel Candidate Genes for Early-Onset Colorectal Cancer Susceptibility.

Approximately 25-30% of colorectal cancer (CRC) cases are expected to result from a genetic predisposition, but in only 5-10% of these cases highly penetrant germline mutations are found. The remaining CRC heritability is still unexplained, and may be caused by a hitherto-undefined set of rare variants with a moderately penetrant risk. Here we aimed to identify novel risk factors for early-onset CRC using whole-exome sequencing, which was performed on a cohort of CRC individuals (n = 55) with a disease onset before 45 years of age.