World Cancer Day
Tomorrow, the world’s population unites in the fight against cancer to celebrate World Cancer Day. We join many others in raising awareness and education about the disease that impacts so many of us. Each year, 8 million people worldwide die from cancer and that number is projected to grow to nearly 12 million by 2025.
Forward is joining the cause to prevent cancer deaths by offering free genetic cancer screening as part of our membership during the month of February.
We inherit genes from our families at birth — and in most cases, these prevent us from developing certain types of cancers. However, in some cases, mutated genes are passed down, leaving us at a much higher risk of developing certain types of cancers. There are over 14 million cancer cases in the world each year and approximately 10–15% of these are associated with inherited gene mutations.
Through the latest advancements in technology and genetics, we’re able to identify your risk for certain cancers, and take action to manage your health. By using just a small sample of saliva or blood, we can look at 36 different genes associated with an increased risk of certain cancers. This includes colon, breast, ovarian, prostate, pancreatic, thyroid and more.
As recently as a few years ago, genetic testing for a hereditary cancer syndrome like the BRCA1 gene mutation could cost as much as $4,000. Thanks to automation and a Supreme Court ruling that invalidated prior patents on BRCA1 and other genes, the cost has come down close to $400 and continues to fall.
We’re not far from a world where everyone’s full genome is sequenced by their doctor at no cost. But while sequencing is rapidly becoming a commodity, we’re still in early days of interpretation and understanding of how specific mutations we find impact cancer risk. The lack of understanding brings risk of harm if it leads doctors to intervene and recommend invasive preventative procedures before we have a full understanding of the costs and benefits.
Machine learning and AI will eventually shed light on the clinical implications of many genetic mutations that are not yet understood. By offering genetic cancer screening for free to those at risk, Forward can help accelerate this understanding while providing better preventative care.
Even among our early members, proactive genetic testing has already found known mutations like BRCA1, MSH6, and CHEK2. For perspective, someone with a family history of cancer who also carries the MSH6 gene mutation may have a dramatically higher lifetime risk of colon cancer — 50% instead of 2% — making it more like a coin flip than a lightning strike. Armed with this knowledge, we can recommend increased screening and mammograms in cases where there’s good data to show that the benefit outweighs the potential harm from the screening itself.
Join us in participating in World Cancer Day — you can donate to the American Cancer Society here and learn more about ways you can help here.
Stop by and see us in person at 180 Sutter St. in San Francisco to learn more about us.
Adrian Aoun
CEO & Founder
goforward.com
