Tens of thousands of people with Jewish ancestry who are more
likely to carry a genetic fault that can increase the risk of
developing some cancers will receive genetic testing through a
new programme announced by the NHS in England today.
With plans to identify thousands more people carrying faults in
the BRCA genes over the next two years so they can seek early
access to surveillance and prevention services, the testing
programme is part of the NHS’ major drive to catch tumours early
when they are easier to treat.
BRCA refers to two genes, BRCA1 and BRCA2, which repair DNA
damage and normally help to protect against cancer. Some
individuals are born with a fault in one of these genes, and this
increases their likelihood of developing certain cancers,
including breast, ovarian, prostate and pancreatic cancer.
People with Jewish ancestry are around six times more likely to
carry such genetic faults than the general population.
The new national NHS Jewish BRCA Testing Programme will see
anyone over the age of 18 with Jewish ancestry offered a simple
genetic saliva test to look for the presence of BRCA1 or BRCA2
faults.
The saliva samples will be carried out at home and then be sent
to labs for testing.
During the pilot phase of the programme, thousands of people have
already come forward for testing and the national roll-out will
see around 30,000 people tested over the next two years.
People with at least one Jewish grandparent can register for a
saliva kit to be sent to their home address by visiting: https://jewishbrca.org/
Charities Jnetics and Chai Cancer Care have been running an
engagement campaign to help raise awareness in Jewish communities
and encourage a significant number of men and women with Jewish
ancestry to come forward for a free test.
Peter Johnson, national clinical director for cancer at
NHS England said: “BRCA testing
for the people most at risk has the potential to save lives, by
allowing them to take steps to reduce the chance of cancers
developing or making sure that any cancer can be detected as
early as possible, with those at increased risk able to take
advantage of surveillance and prevention programmes with their
health teams.
"We know it can be daunting finding out
whether or not you have an altered BRCA gene, and some people may
feel they’d rather not know, but finding out early means people
can get the support they need from the NHS.
“We want as many people as possible to take advantage of this
testing programme, so please do come forward for a simple saliva
test if you are eligible – most people won’t have an altered
gene, but if you do, the NHS can provide you with further
testing, surveillance or treatment as early as possible.”
Jnetics CEO Nicole Gordon said: “We are
delighted to see the NHS Jewish BRCA Testing Programme officially
launch. The initial pilot phase has proven to be a huge success
and we are now able to roll this out more broadly and offer the
Jewish community a huge opportunity to gain the knowledge that
will help mitigate against the impact of hereditary cancer and
ultimately save lives.”
Lisa Steele, Chief Executive at Chai added: “We
want to ensure that this programme reaches as many people as
possible. For more than 30 years Chai Cancer Care has been
supporting members of the Jewish community affected by a cancer
diagnosis. This is a landmark moment as we can now harness
developments in genetic screening to increase the chances of
preventing the onset of cancer. Chai is dedicated to ensuring
that anyone who needs support at any point during this process
can access that help.”
Having an altered BRCA gene does not mean someone will definitely
develop cancer in their lifetime, but being aware of their
significantly increased risk can enable them to receive support
from the NHS and consider a range of options including regular
screening, lifestyle changes, risk-reducing surgery or medicines
to help lower their risk.
The NHS is seeing and treating record numbers of people for
cancer, with 30% more people being treated last year than in
2015/16 and almost 3 million people receiving potentially
lifesaving cancer checks in the last 12 months, ensuring more
people have been diagnosed at an early stage.
Diagnosing cancers earlier saves lives and the NHS continues to
roll out innovations to catch cancers early when treatments are
more likely to be successful.
The hugely successful NHS targeted lung health check programme –
where mobile trucks offer lung checks at shopping centres and
supermarket car parks in the heart of communities – has now
diagnosed over 3,000 people with lung cancers, three quarters at
stage one or two.
For more information please visit: https://www.nhsjewishbrcaprogramme.org.uk/
