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Family Environments of Women Seeking BRCA1/BRCA2 Genetic Mutation Testing: An Exploratory Analysis
Author(s) -
Keenan Lisa A.,
Lesniak Karen T.,
Guarnaccia Charles A.,
Althaus Becky,
Ethington Gaby,
Blum Joanne L.
Publication year - 2004
Publication title -
journal of genetic counseling
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.867
H-Index - 52
eISSN - 1573-3599
pISSN - 1059-7700
DOI - 10.1023/b:jogc.0000018824.04992.7b
Subject(s) - genetic counseling , distress , genetic testing , normative , family history , medicine , breast cancer , clinical psychology , psychology , cancer , psychiatry , genetics , biology , philosophy , epistemology
Although there is some understanding of the shared characteristics and predictors of psychological distress of women participating in hereditary breast and ovarian cancer registries, these same characteristics are only beginning to be identified in research on community women seeking genetic testing for BRCA1/BRCA2 gene mutations. This study provides an initial exploration of characteristics associated with family environments for 51 community women waiting to receive such genetic testing results. Thirty‐four of the 36 women classified on family environment type of the Family Environment Scale (FES) were from Personal Growth‐Oriented families. Comparisons of women with and without personal cancer histories resulted in a trend for women with personal cancer histories to be classified as from Independence‐Oriented families. Reported distress appears to vary for different family emphases based on family and personal cancer history. A moral–religious family emphasis consistently appeared to be associated with decreased psychological distress. Preliminary analyses comparing these community women (who were not part of a hereditary registry but were self‐ or physician‐referred) seeking genetic testing with normal and distressed family means found that increased cohesion and expressiveness may be related to decreased conflict, indicative of potentially supportive family environments for these women. When compared with normative data, a subset consisting of the Ashkenazi Jewish women showed a trend of less cohesion than normal families, but similar cohesion levels as distressed families.