Navigating Your Mammogram: Essential FAQs from a Nurse Practitioner
OCT 16, 2025A Nurse Practitioner answers your essential mammogram questions. Understand timing, prep, the procedure, callbacks, and financial options.
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Here’s a gift you can give the relatives this holiday. Have a talk about your family’s history of cancer. It may feel like a heavy topic, but knowing if a type of cancer runs in the family empowers everyone to reduce their risk and potentially avoid a serious diagnosis.
It’s important to note that you can get cancer even if your family doesn’t have a history. In fact, just 5 to 10 percent of all cancer cases are inherited. That means most don’t have a family history of cancer before they are diagnosed.
But some do have a family history of cancer, due to an abnormal gene that gets passed from generation to generation. Cancer can also “run” in families because they share the same behaviors which raise their risk, such as smoking, sedentary lifestyle or unhealthy eating habits. These families are at risk for hereditary cancer syndromes.
If you’re getting together on Zoom this holiday season, bring up the topic. Talk about what relatives have had cancer and whether anyone has been genetically tested. Take a few minutes to remind family members of what they can do--regardless of family history--to protect themselves. Things to discuss with your provider and family members include:
Some red flags for hereditary cancer syndromes include the following:
Remember, early detection and healthy habits are essential regardless of your family history of cancer. We can all take steps to prevent some types of cancer from occurring – or catch it at its earliest, most treatable stage. Reach out to your provider our our CHI Health Cancer team for more info.
Original Post Date: Dec. 16, 2020
Revised: Oct. 28, 2021
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