Psychological and emotional impacts of communicating breast cancer risk using multifactorial assessment with polygenic risk score: findings from PERSPECTIVE I&I.

Abstract

Purpose: To examine the psychological and emotional outcomes of personalized breast cancer risk communication up to one year post-disclosure in a risk-stratified breast screening pre-implementation study (PERSPECTIVE I&I).

Methods: Among 3753 females aged 40-69, unaffected by breast cancer, with a prior mammogram, who underwent multifactorial risk assessment to estimate their 10-year breast cancer risk, 2734 completed follow-up questionnaires up to one year post-risk communication: 78.5% were at average risk, 16.5% at higher than average risk, and 5.0% at high risk. The impact of risk communication on breast cancer worry and psychological distress and factors associated with decisional regret were examined.

Results: Breast cancer worry and psychological distress scores remained low after risk communication and at one year follow-up. Up to one year post-disclosure, small significant differences in breast cancer worry were observed between risk levels. Decisional regret was very low one year after risk communication. Lower levels of decisional regret were significantly associated with some factors, including higher satisfaction with the information received.

Conclusion: This study suggests that personalized breast cancer risk communication has low negative psychological and emotional effects and highlights the importance of the information received for implementing this approach at population level.