Essentia Health Offering New High-Risk Breast Program

Essentia-St. Joseph’s Medical Center is offering a new program aimed at catching individuals early that are considered high-risk for developing breast cancer.

The program is designed to catch those who have a high risk of developing breast cancer and also to determine an estimated calculated risk for the patient’s 5-year, 10-year, and lifetime risk for developing the disease. A person is considered high risk if they have several close relatives on the same side with breast cancer, a mother, sister, or daughter who developed breast cancer under the age of 50, or two first-degree relatives with the disease.

“Based on their individual risk for developing breast cancer, we establish an individualized plan of care which included surveillance measures, in [the] hope to monitor them closely for the development of breast cancer so that we can intervene as soon as possible if indeed they do develop breast cancer,” explained Jessica Hinkley, Family Practice Certified Nurse Practitioner at Essentia-St. Joseph’s Medical Center.

Essentia recommends if you are concerned about being at high-risk for developing breast cancer, that you speak to your primary care provider to explore if a referral to the High-Risk Breast Program would be right for you.