Quebec researchers develop new at-home breast cancer test

Personalized risk assessment for breast cancer that was developed in Quebec.

A new at-home test to assess your personal risk for breast cancer was developed recently in Quebec.

Dr. Jacques Simard of Université de Laval is the lead researcher on the Perspectives study.

“It’s a comprehensive risk-prediction tool, which includes all the information related to known risk factors like families' history, hormonal factors, and also some lifestyle risk factors,” he said.

The questionnaire and DNA from a saliva sample can reveal a woman’s risk level, according to Quebec Breast Cancer Foundation CEO Karine Iseult-Ippersiel.

“Taken apart, sometimes those markers don’t mean much, but when you add them together, your risk can go from 20 to 80 per cent higher,” she said, adding that when it comes to breast cancer early detection is key.

“Stage one, your survival rate is 98 to 100 per cent, whereas when you get to a stage four, your survival rate goes down to 23 per cent,” she said. “So, the goal is to save as many women as possible.”

Simard said the test can save lives and save the health-care system a lot of money by avoiding costly late stage treatments.

“Only for the first year’s treatment of stage one, the cost is around $15,000, while at the stage four, only for your first year, it’s around $150,000 dollars,” he said.

The test has already been clinically studied on approximately 4,500 women.

The Quebec Breast Cancer Foundation wants a pilot project to roll out across the province as soon as possible.

“Telling the Quebec population this tool exists and it’s on the cusp of being usable for the general population, and it’s to pressure governments to make it a priority, not a promise, an actual priority,” said Iseult-Ippersiel.