A lot of women identify with writer and actress Jill Kargman – especially a lot of mothers. Jill wrote and starred in Bravo’s “Odd Mom Out” – a show that dramatizes the world of motherhood in the exaggerated universe of ultra wealthy New York. Jill recently made the very difficult decision to get her breasts removed as a way to prevent cancer, and SurvivorNet sat down with the writer to talk about why.
Jill decided to have a prophylactic, or preventative, mastectomy when she found out she carried a genetic mutation called CHEK2 that increases a woman’s risk of developing breast cancer. This wasn’t Jill’s first experience with cancer, she was diagnosed with a rare form of skin cancer called amelanotic melanoma when she was 34-years-old and had just given birth to her third child. She says that in that situation, she first noticed something was wrong when she had a mole that kept bleeding.
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So when she found out that her risk of getting cancer again was increased – she moved fast. After lumps were found in her breasts during a routine mammogram when she was 43, Jill had to undergo several MRIs. “Between my second and third breast MRIs, I decided to get genetic counseling at Sloan Kettering. And they called me and said, ‘It turns out you have CHEK2,’ which is another breast cancer gene. So if BRCA A and B have an 85% chance that you’ll get breast cancer, mine is a 65% chance.”
Generally, doctors estimate that a woman with the CHEK2 mutation has an increased risk of breast cancer – but not quite as high as a woman with a BRCA1 or BRCA2 mutation.
Below are the facts around the specific factor which Jill cited in her decision to get a mastectomy.
CHEK2 & The Risk for Breast Cancer
Bottom line, the CHEK2 mutation generally indicates a 30% or so higher risk for breast cancer. In rare instances, and depending on family history, this can be as high as the 65% increased risk which Jill cites as the factor in her decision. As with Angelina Jolie, women should be aware of their risk, but by no means rush out to make the same decision, or be overly alarmed.
“The CHEK2 gene is a tumor suppressor gene. Women who carry a pathogenic variant in the CHEK2 gene are typically quoted a 30% lifetime risk for developing breast cancer,” says Kara Milliron, a Certified Genetic Counselor at University of Michigan Comprehensive Cancer Center. “There are some studies that have shown a higher risk and some that have shown a lower risk, but most of the data settles around 30%.”
Milliron did note that women who carry two CHEK2 pathogenic variants have a 4 to 6-fold increased risk for developing breast cancer. “This is exceedingly rare, but has been documented,” Milliron said.
Women like Jill who find out they have a genetic mutation that increases their breast cancer risk have a really tough choice to make. Getting your breasts removed because of a risk is a major decision, even if you plan to have reconstruction. Jill said that for her, though, it was a no-brainer.
“I have new boobs,” Jill says. “With no scars. They look really fake, but who cares. And I got to keep my nips,” Jill also said her breast surgery was “no picnic,” but she’s glad she got it.
She’s also glad she had friends and family to be there for her every step of the way. One of those friends just happens to be her former sister-in-law, Drew Barrymore.
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“The summer when I had my surgery [Drew] was really, really there for me. And even when she had to go to L.A., she would send flowers every week, and text me and check in on me,” Jill says. “And those kids of relationships … it just made me feel so taken care of. Even if it was my friend Dana, [who] came over just to sit with me. I was in my bathrobe with my drains. My mom came over to just make me lunch every day, and watch Thomas Crown Affair … I just felt like, if you’re gonna be house-bound, it’s great to be with your inner circle.”
It’s also great to have a partner who truly loves you, and tells you you’re beautiful no matter what health issue you may be going through. “Cancer is a great way to find out if your’e with the love of your life, or a s***head,” Jill says. “I think it presses the fast forward button on getting to the bottom of that.” Lucky for Jill, her husband is one of the good ones.
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