The Food and Drug Administration approved a 23andMe direct-to-consumer genetic test used to detect the risk of breast cancer, NBC News reports. The test is designed to detect three of the more than 1,000 known BRCA mutations that increase an individual's likelihood of developing breast cancer. Of the test's approval, Len Lichtenfeld of the American Cancer Society said, "It is also going to add fuel to a growing fire about how we as a nation assess genetic risks for cancer, and whether society is prepared for what is inevitably going to become a genomic-influenced and informed culture of health." Lichtenfeld added, "Of this I have no doubt: this is the start of an early discussion on the value and role of genetic testing in the population at large."
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