Format:
Multi-Presenter/Panel
Speakers:
Dr. Lesa Dawson, VGH Prevention and Survivorship Clinic, Gynaecologic Cancer Initiative
Dr. Rona Cheifetz, BC Cancer Hereditary Cancer Program High Risk Clinic
Melanie O’Loughlin, Clinical Educator, BC Cancer Hereditary Cancer Program
Session Overview:
BRCA mutations are only one piece of the hereditary cancer puzzle. This expert panel will take you beyond single-gene risk to explore a range of other factors that can significantly shape your personal cancer risk profile.
You’ll learn how emerging science is revealing the role of breast density, modifiable lifestyle risk factors, polygenic risk scores, and tools like CANRisk in painting a more complete and accurate picture of who is at risk — and why. These advances are moving us toward a new era of personalized risk management, where prevention and screening strategies can be tailored with greater precision than ever before.
Drs. Dawson and Cheifetz, together with Genetic Counsellor and Clinical Educator Melanie O’Loughlin, will show how these factors work together in practice, what they mean for decision-making today, and how they’re likely to transform clinical care in the near future.
Key Topics:
Breast Density: Why it matters for both risk and screening accuracy.
Modifiable Lifestyle Risk Factors: How obesity, alcohol and breastfeeding can affect cancer risk.
Polygenic Risk Scores: How multiple genes combine to influence your risk.
CANRisk Tool: Bringing all risk factors together into a single, usable score.
Personalized Risk Management: What these advances mean for your care now — and what’s coming next.
Q&A: Your chance to ask questions and get expert guidance.