Departments and Specialties

The Jacqueline M. Wilentz Comprehensive Breast Center

• Do you have a mother, sister or daughter who has been diagnosed with breast cancer?
  
  
• Have you had a diagnosis of a precancerous breast condition and/or had two or more breast biopsies?
  
  
• Did you begin menstruating before age 12?
  
  
• Were you over age 30 when you had your first child?
  
  
• Are you over age 30 and have never given birth?

If you answered yes to any of these questions, it may be time to learn about the Breast Cancer High Risk Program offered by The Jacqueline M. Wilentz Comprehensive Breast Center. The program, the only one of its kind offered in Monmouth and Ocean counties, evaluates, educates and closely monitors women at high risk for developing the disease.

Women over age 60 also are encouraged to be evaluated as part of the program, regardless of other risk factors, because risk of breast cancer increases with age.

As part of the program, the center has assembled a high risk team, comprised of highly qualified physicians, nurses, psychosocial and genetic counselors, medical oncologists, a pathologist and the breast center radiologist, all of whom work closely with each woman at high risk to develop a personal breast health plan.

The team provides:

• Detailed risk assessment (using statistical models that estimate individualized risk of breast cancer, based on a woman's age, the presence or absence of various risk factors and the time span over which risk is to be projected)
• Case review and surveillance recommendations
• Clinical examination
• Mammography (if indicated)
• Breast self-examination instruction and breast health education
• Genetic testing (if indicated)
• Counseling
• Support groups

It's important to remember that not all high risk patients develop breast cancer. High risk means that the possibility of developing this disease is higher than the statistical 1-in-9 average.

If you'd like further information on the Breast Cancer High Risk Program or any other service offered by the center, please call 732-923-7700.

The Cancer Center at Monmouth Medical Center, which includes The Jacqueline M. Wilentz Comprehensive Breast Center, is a clinical research affiliate of the Cancer Institute of New Jersey, the state's only NCI-designated clinical cancer center.

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