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Exeter News-Letter CANCER TALK ON NOV. 21: SPECIALIST TO DISCUSS Exeter, NH – The public is invited to a free community program to learn about the link between cancer and genetics. "Is Cancer in Your Genes?" will be held at 6 p.m., Monday, Nov. 21, in the north conference rooms at Exeter Hospital, 5 Alumni Drive. The event is co-sponsored by New Hampshire Oncology and Hematology and the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute. It is the fifth "Let's Talk," a series of educational programs on cancer care. Another part of the event is the announcement of a new cancer counseling program to be operated by New Hampshire Oncology and Hematology in conjunction with Exeter Hospital. "We are pretty excited about this," said Dr. Fred Briccetti of New Hampshire Oncology and Hematology. "People will meet with a genetic counselor and their cases will be reviewed by doctors from Dana-Farber who will provide a recommendation on whether or not a person should be tested. The program will begin the first of next year." New Hampshire Oncology and Hematology entered into a professional affiliation with Dana-Farber Cancer Institute about a year and a half ago, said Ron Barkley, executive director. "Both they and we identified that the community, consumers and public in general have a hunger, a desire for consumer-friendly information," said Barkley. "I know I do, about lots of things and cancer is one of the top on the list because it's unlikely a family member, neighbor or someone you know has not experienced a cancer journey." Barkley said the goal is to do more for the community than just treat cancer. He said the groups want to empower community members to understand cancer and cancer care, so if it occurs in their family, they are better prepared to ask intelligent questions and be accountable to bring about a good result. "There are two worlds for cancer care, the insider and the outsider," said Barkley. "When confronted with a diagnosis and a whole lexicon of technical buzzwords, it would be a good thing if people had some education and discussion about topics not within the traditional venue of health care and medical practice, so we decided to offer good content in an informational and friendly way to the public." The guest speaker for the event will be Dr. Judy Garber, director of the Cancer Risk and Prevention Program at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute. Garber will address the heredity of cancer, opportunities for genetic counseling and benefits of genetic testing. Family history is an important risk factor for cancer. Genetic testing can help to detect cancer early or even prevent it. Briccetti calls Garber one of the country's and the world's experts on genetics and cancer. "She is the foremost authority and a great doctor," said Briccetti. "She set up, at Dana-Farber, a clinic where people come who perceive themselves, or their doctors see them at significant risk for a component for breast cancer, or other type of cancer. They will speak to a genetic counselor to talk about the pros and cons of getting screened." For example, Briccetti said that about 5 percent of women with breast cancer have identified a component that put them at risk. The BRCA1 or BRCA2 gene can be passed from mother to daughter or from father to daughter or to sons. "There are others we don't yet identify specifically," said Briccetti. "These are single genes that put people at risk. If there is a family history of breast cancer, your daughter has an increased risk." Learning if one has the risk component, opens the door to options. "Once identified, the person can choose to have surgery," said Briccetti. "It has been proven that removing breast tissue lessens the risk by about 95 percent. A small risk remains because you can never remove all the breast tissue. Removing the ovaries in premenopausal women reduces breast and ovarian cancer risks. There can also be pharmacological interventions, medical inhibitors that reduce the risk. One can choose heightened screening. We have some risk reduction protocols available locally." One con, or reason why a person might choose not to have genetic testing is the psychological factor. People may not be able to deal with the knowledge they are at a greater risk, said Briccetti. Preregistration for the event is not required but is appreciated. Register by calling New Hampshire Oncology and Hematology at 622-4978 or visit on the Web at www.nhoh.com.
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