In the future, a gene scan may be a routine part of health care in the same way that regular physical exams are today. But although that's still years away, it doesn't mean that your medical inheritance should be overlooked or forgotten until then. Gathering information about your relatives can help you and your doctor identify disease patterns and determine individual risk. Doing so may also provide the motivation necessary to avoid or ameliorate what could lie ahead. If there is a disease pattern, she added, it's better to know ahead of time.
Many people find out only when there's a problem.'' Many diseases have a hereditary component.
Between 10 and 15 percent of people who receive diagnoses of colon cancer have a family history of the disease, according to the American Cancer Society. Between 5 and 10 percent of women who develop breast cancer also appear to have a genetic mutation that increased their risk of the disease. Some relatives may have died long ago, for example. Diseases may also have gone by different names in the past or been incorrectly diagnosed. A phone call may be all it takes to fill in medical blanks.