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2014 Washington Street
Newton, MA 02462
617-243-6000
9 Hope Ave
Waltham, MA 02453
617-243-5590
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Sunday: 9:00 am to 2:00 pm
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Call 617-243-6566 or toll free 866-NWH-DOCS to speak to a CareFinder representative.
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307 W Central St
Natick, MA 01760
617-243-5345
159 Wells Ave
Newton Centre, MA 02459
111 Norfolk Street
Walpole, MA 02081maps
978 Worcester Road (rte 9)
Wellesley, Massachusetts 02482
781-235-5200
Open 24 hours
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25 Washington Street
Wellesley, Massachusetts 02481
617-219-1520
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The National Cancer Institute notes that altered genes play a major role in about 5 to 10 percent of all cancers. These genes can be passed down through a family and can increase your risk for developing certain cancers.
If you are concerned about your own risk of cancer or your family’s risk due to a personal or family history of cancer, our Cancer Genetics Program can help.
We offer a number of services related to understanding your genetic risk for cancer, including:
When we screen you for breast cancer, ovarian cancer, or colorectal cancer, we gather information about your family’s history of cancer and input it into our advanced risk-assessment software. If we find that you have an increased risk of an inherited cancer, we’ll contact you and your referring doctor to recommend that you undergo cancer genetic testing.
Our patients have seen positive results from our risk-assessment program. We’ve identified an elevated risk for inherited breast and ovarian cancer in about 5 percent of patients who have been screened, and we’ve noted an increased risk for colorectal cancer in about 2 percent of patients screened with this method.
Researchers have discovered several genes associated with inherited breast, ovarian, and colorectal cancer in families. Some common risk factors for these inherited cancers include:
It’s important to know about your family’s history of cancer so you can be aware of how your own risk might be affected. Create a record of your family's health history.
For more information about our Cancer Genetics Program, please call 617-831-7430. The following webpages also contain helpful information about genetic risks for cancer: