The High Risk Breast Cancer Program at Wake Forest Baptist Health provides breast cancer screening, chemoprevention and genetic risk evaluation for individuals at increased risk of breast cancer due to personal risk factors.

Our multidisciplinary team is comprised of specially trained physicians, genetic counselors and care coordinators who provide:

  • Education
  • Hereditary cancer risk assessment
  • Genetic counseling and education about your risk of developing breast cancer
  • Genetic testing to identify any genetic mutation that may lead to cancer or that may affect other members of your family
  • Individualized cancer surveillance plan
  • Prevention programs for people who are concerned about their personal and family history of breast cancer

Patients with the following risk factors may be referred to the program for genetic testing:

  • Breast cancer diagnosis ≤ 50 years of age
  • Bilateral breast cancer
  • Breast cancer diagnosis plus any of the following in patient or close relative(s):

- Breast cancer in 2 relatives
- Ovarian cancer
- Male breast cancer
- Pancreatic cancer
- Advanced prostate cancer
- Ashkenazi Jewish ancestry

Patients with the following risk factors may be referred to the program for preventative services: 

  • Positive genetic test result for a mutation associated with an inherited susceptibility to cancer (examples: BRCA1/2, ATM, CHEK2, PALB2, PTEN, STK11, or TP53 gene mutations)
  • Uninformative genetic test result but has a significant family history concerning for inherited susceptibility.
  • Abnormal breast biopsy including atypical ductal hyperplasia (ADH), atypical lobular hyperplasia (ALH) and lobular carcinoma

Preventative Services

To reduce your risk of breast cancer, practice a healthy lifestyle. Make sure to get adequate exercise, eat a balanced diet and do things that help you relax. Our preventative services include: