Disclosing Mothers’ Hereditary Cancer Risk Doesn’t Worry or Distress Young People Long-term; but Also Doesn’t Alter Health Choices

Parents often talk to their children about familial risks for genetic diseases, which has left providers and parents wondering about the psychological ramifications of such news over time. A new study, “Long-Term Adaptation among Adolescent and Young Adult Children to Familial Cancer Risk,” in the August 2022 Pediatrics (published online July 21) found that adolescents and young adults can cope well with this information. Researchers studied a cohort of 272 teens and young adults from four regions in the US of which 76.1% had mothers who were breast/ovarian cancer survivors and 17.3% had mothers who were also BRCA+, meaning their mother had an inherited predisposition to these cancers. Their children reported relatively low levels of psychological stress long after learning about their mothers’ BRCA status, even if the results were positive for a mutation. Their children were also no more or less likely to act in ways that could reduce cancer risks, such as smoking or drinking less and exercising more. The researchers concluded that following parents' genetic counseling, it is safe and appropriate for mothers to discuss their BRCA test results with children, but that more research is needed on ways to engage children with this information.

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The American Academy of Pediatrics is an organization of 67,000 primary care pediatricians, pediatric medical subspecialists and pediatric surgical specialists dedicated to the health, safety and well-being of infants, children, adolescents and young adults.