Page 10 - Christiana Care Focus March 2109

Targeting breast cancer risk earlier
New grant supports genetic counseling and BRCA testing for more women.
Anew grant will expand genetic counseling and testing for women diagnosed with three subtypes of breast cancer labeled as early onset, triple negative and HER2 negative metastatic breast cancers. The Familial Cancer Risk Assessment Program at Christiana Care’s Health System’s Helen F. Graham Cancer Center & Research Institute received a $150,000 grant from the Association of Community Cancer Centers (ACCC) in partnership with Pfizer Global Medical Grants. The grant is part of a national initiative to improve the quality of breast cancer care for women. Projects awarded grants seek to address barriers to counseling and BRCA testing for women in order to extend best practices to much larger patient populations, including underserved minorities. Results could
also shed light on how changes in testing practices impact treatment decision-making.
“Delawareans will benefit from this project as we improve our ability to identify more individuals at risk who meet evidence- based criteria for genetic counseling and testing,” said Zohra Ali-Khan Catts, MS, LCGC, director of Genetic Counseling at Christiana Care.
“By understanding their germ-line BRCA mutational status, patients can participate in informed decision-making about treatment options now or in the future that ultimately may improve their quality of life and reduce morbidity and mortality from breast cancer.”
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