Genetic screening spreads to primary care at Sanford clinics

Anne Roberts of Moorhead

Anne Roberts of Moorhead talks about her decision to have her breasts removed after being diagnosed with the gene that made her a high risk for developing breast cancer. David Samson / The Forum

Sanford medical lab scientist Tylise Graff looks at tumor tissue from a breast cancer sample which helps determine the course of treatment. David Samson / The Forum

Would you consider genetic testing?

FARGO Anne Roberts considers herself a breast cancer previvor.

After learning that she inherited a gene that placed her at very high risk and knowing her family history was riddled with cancer she opted for preventive surgery, a double mastectomy.

My surgeon explained to me it wasnt a matter of if, she said. I was going to get cancer. It was a question of when.

Roberts was 55 when she had the surgery four years ago the same age her older sister first developed breast cancer, and the age of her paternal grandmother when she died of cancer.

Genetic testing revealed the Moorhead woman had an 87 percent chance of developing breast cancer. Preemptive surgery reduced her risk by 90 percent.

Now, the kind of genetic screening and counseling that has long been common in treating cancer and assessing prenatal or childhood risk of inheriting disease is spreading to primary care at Sanford Health clinics under a new $125 million initiative in genetic medicine.

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Genetic screening spreads to primary care at Sanford clinics