Amy Gallagher's Story: Proactive and Preventative

“I’m not a cancer survivor, but I am a BRCA1 carrier – and am trying to bring more awareness, research and connection to that space.”

Amy Gallagher lives in a suburb of Minneapolis. It’s where she and her husband work, where her children attend school – and where, in March of 2017, Amy learned that she carries a BRCA1 gene mutation.

“I got the news on my daughter’s third birthday,” she remembers.

Amy herself was just 32 years old.

“My entire career has been in non-profit oncology event planning and fundraising, so I’ve had a lot of interaction with individuals experiencing cancer. Many of them carry BRCA1 mutations, so I thought I was prepared to hear the results. But it really is different when it’s your own diagnosis,” she says. 

Anxiety set in. What would this mean for Amy’s health, her future, her husband, her two children?

The Road to Testing

Many relatives on Amy’s dad’s side of the family, including her great-aunt and great-grandmother, had lost their lives to breast or ovarian cancer. Her grandfather and other male relatives had died of various cancers, as well.

“When I shared my family cancer history at doctors’ appointments, my providers usually suggested we discuss it further, or that I consider genetic testing. But I sort of brushed them off because I was so young.”

Then, in 2016, Amy learned that another aunt – her dad’s sister – and a first cousin both tested positive for a BRCA1 gene mutation. Suddenly, the writing was on the wall: Relatives who had had cancer had likely carried a BRCA1 gene mutation – and they might have passed it on to Amy’s dad, who then might have passed it on to Amy. Both men and women can inherit these gene mutations and pass them on--there is a fifty percent chance a BRCA1 (or BRCA2) carrier’s children, male or female, will inherit the mutation.

Amy decided to undergo genetic testing. In March 2017, she got the results.

The Basser Center Connection

Not long after learning about her BRCA1 mutation, Amy came across the Basser Center for BRCA on Instagram. She reached out and became part of the Basser Young Leadership Council (YLC) – a dynamic group of young adults, all affected by a BRCA gene mutation. Together they lend support, engage with BRCA-related research, and host Basser Center YLC events and initiatives. Emails and articles from the Basser Center help keep Amy on the forefront of activity and advances in hereditary cancers. Sometimes there are even opportunities to connect BRCA-affected women Amy meets at Firefly Sisterhood with the Basser Center as a resource.

“Basser Center is a huge source of knowledge, and does a great job of encouraging men and women alike to ‘know our genes.’”

Looking Ahead

More members of Amy’s family have undergone genetic testing since hearing her results. As it turns out, Amy’s brother, father, another aunt, and most of her paternal cousins – both male and female – also carry a BRCA1 gene mutation.

“A lot of people are surprised to hear that I inherited the mutation from my dad, because BRCA1 is largely associated with female cancers,” she says. “There’s a lot of satisfaction in helping to set the record straight.”

Amy’s daughter and son, now eight and fourteen years old, have not yet undergone testing to determine whether they inherited a BRCA1 mutation. Doctors generally advise against genetic testing until young adults are at least 25 years old, the point at which young women with BRCA1 mutations are advised to start undergoing routine mammograms and other regular preventative screenings.

“Naturally I worry about whether my children have the mutation, especially my daughter,” Amy says. “It’s a heavy burden, and one I hope they won’t have to carry. But I also hold out hope for breakthroughs to occur in research unfolding at places like the Basser Center.”

Get BRCA Answers

Think you or someone you love might carry a BRCA mutation? Genetic counseling and testing is recommended for individuals whose family and personal health histories point to an increased chance of a cancer gene mutation. To learn if you may be a candidate for genetic testing, take the BRCA risk factor quiz.