My boyfriend’s (female) cousin just went through this. On his mother’s side they carry this gene and his mother and at least two of her sisters have had breast cancer and double mastectomies. Im thinking this might be a Christmas gift I could get her but I don’t want to offend. Can I get some opinions ~ is this a gift you give to someone or does it just bring back bad memories?

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7 years ago
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Susan I know this is an old question, but I think it would be a good gift. I found it very interesting. I'm BRCA1+, I've had prophylactic surgery, and lost my mother, grandmother, and cousin to breast cancer. It did bring back memories, but not necessarily bad ones. It was more that I found myself nodding at certain passages.

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Lizzie Stark I hope this book is something that people feel comfortable giving out to other BRCA patients--it contains a lot of information about the history and science of the breast cancer genes, and the legal battles, as well as my own family story.

Part of the reason I wrote it is that I thought the emotional story of the BRCA genes had gone unreported--having a family legacy of cancer has a powerful effect on future generations. I wanted to write something that would help people understand that it's OK to feel whatever they're feeling about their BRCA diagnoses.

So I hope it doesn't just bring back bad memories!

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