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Breast Cancer Scenario

After your mother was diagnosed with breast cancer, she decided to get tested for a genetic mutation that is linked to breast cancers that "run in families." You got tested as well, and discovered that you had inherited a genetic mutation that predisposes you to getting breast cancer. While the possibility of remission was always at the back of your mind, you now know that not only could the old cancer come back, but you're also at increased risk of developing new breast cancers over the course of your lifetime.

As you watch your mother losing the battle with her illness, you consider your options. You know that you might reduce - though not eliminate - the risk of getting breast cancer if you undergo a "prophylactic mastectomy": complete removal of both breasts, the healthy one as well as the one previously treated for cancer. Your insurance would pay for it, but not for reconstructive surgery afterward.

As a single woman, you're worried about how a mastectomy will affect you. Will you feel less whole? How might others - friends, family, future romantic partners - react to your changed body?

You believe that the operation would give you peace of mind, but you aren't sure that the physical and emotional toll would be worth it.

Should you schedule the surgery?

Yes, have the mastectomy.

No, don't have it.