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Thu 1 Jul, 2004 09:48 am
A 22-year-old woman has decided to follow her mother and have both her healthy breasts removed in an attempt to beat her family's cancer curse.
Local radio presenter Becky Measures is said to have an 80% chance of developing breast cancer because of an hereditary gene.
It has so far struck down nine relatives, going back six generations.
Becky's mother Wendy Watson was one of the first women to have her healthy breasts removed to avoid contracting cancer 11 years ago.
Mrs Watson's own great-great-great-great grandmother died of the disease in 1849.
Becky works at a radio station, Peak 107FM, in Chesterfield, Derbyshire.
She said: "It's been a major part of family life and it brought it home when my cousin got breast cancer at 29.
"At 22 it was a hard decision but I've grown up with this and have just got to get on with it.
"As time goes on it gets more worrying.
"It's better to get it out of the way.
She could have at least hung onto them until she was 27!
What an awful choice to make.
I think I would do the same.
the grim choices of reality
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