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From the moment MaryEllen Sheppard was diagnosed with triple negative breast cancer, she wondered how she developed cancer.
Her ancestors, she said, tended to live long, healthy lives.
And other than a cousin, she wasn’t aware of anyone else in her family who had breast cancer.
As her battle against the disease began, MaryEllen’s thoughts also turned to her sisters, nieces, daughter and granddaughter who was on the way. Could they be at risk too?
In late March, MaryEllen and her sister Eileen met with Mayo Clinic’s genetic counselor Katherine Hunt to find out if genetics could have played a role in her diagnosis and get a better idea of how at risk her female relatives are.
The following video shows excerpts from MaryEllen’s actual counseling session with Katherine Hunt.
And watch the bonus footage of MaryEllen sharing her thoughts on her genetic counseling session and the procedure she needed to insert a port for her remaining chemotherapy sessions.
Missed an episode?
Please click on the following to see MaryEllen’s journey from the beginning:
Dr Northfelt on Mayo Clinic’s Cancer Center team
MaryEllen on why she enrolled in a clinical trial
As always, please feel free to post a comment about the series or a message to MaryEllen after each episode.
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