Variant, Schmariant No song for this

August 15

We really need to find some of my father’s living cousins from his mother’s side of the family! I will post a plea out on Rootsweb.com and any other genealogy link I can find. Family information is at the end of this blog.

I phoned the geneticist this morning to check on the status of the gene testing results. Her assistant called close to 12 noon to schedule an appointment at 3 pm to go over the results. . .they were in. I asked if we could talk over the phone given the “parking lot” that happens on I-5 on Fridays; they said no; they prefer to give the results in person.

It was amazing for me to immediately go into, “oh no, it’s positive; otherwise they would talk to me on the phone”. . .and quickly switching to “walk on the water, Renee”. While I did feel tense and stomach had butterflies, I was okay. It was an answer that we wanted and needed to hear. If it was positive, then we had the time to research plastic surgeons and reconstruction options.

The testing came back as “BRCA1 –no mutation detected” and “BRCA2 – genetic variant of uncertain significance. Therefore, the contribution of this variant to the relative risk of breast or ovarian cancer cannot be established solely from this analysis”.

In other words:

Mutations in the BRCA1 and BRCA2 cause most cases of hereditary breast and ovarian cancer. A change was detected in the BRCA2 gene but it is not known if this change is linked to cancer or if the gene runs in my family. The testing company will continue to gather information about genetic variants of “uncertain significance” such as the one identified in my test. If any new information becomes available about my variant, they will notify my geneticist.

Free testing is available to some of my relatives – such as my mom (though that’s not where the gene is thought to come from), or any female relative diagnosed with invasive breast cancer before age 60, or a male relative with breast cancer at any age, or any female relative diagnosed with ovarian cancer.

An interesting item was that there are 6 previous observations of this gene variant in unrelated families – 1 of Central/Eastern European, 3 of Western European and 2 were not specified.

Lumpectomy on Wednesday is a go!

Vic is doing great. . . .his foot/ankle are back to normal and his face is not swollen. His regular doctor said if his blood pressure is consistently low, he will go back onto some meds he has had before. He has a check up with the surgeons on Tuesday before I go in for radio isotopes.

Here's what I've come up with so far on my grandmother's siblings and my father's cousins. Haven't found any living people yet.

MY GRANDPARENTS:

George Washington Fletcher
b. 21 Oct 1860
d. 5 Feb 1930. Kingsley, Iowa
m. Orpha (Orpah) Riddle, b. 1860

THEIR CHILDREN:

Earl
b. about 1885
d
m.

Herbert
b. abt 1886
d.
m. Florence Atkinson
Sons:
Vernon
Robert
Dean

Mary
b. 1887
d.
m.

Albert
b. abt 1891
d.
m. Harriet L. Maser or Moser b about 1893

Maud
b. 1891
d. 1941
m. Fred Henry on 30 Mar 1910
Daughter: Daisy b. 1914 (lived with George and Orpha per census)

Gertie Nellie
b. 1893
d. 11 Jan 1974, South Dakota
m. Leigh Clark Finch of Madison, SD;
Son: Vern Lee Finch b. 1915 d. 1993;
Daughter: Ruth 1917 b. in SD m. Kenneth V. Billet on 8 Mar 1941
Ruth’s children:
Gregory Scott Billet m. Sharalynn Cordes, Hennepin MN
Michael Alan Billet m. Catherine Laughlin, Hennepin Minnesota

Raymond S
b. 1895
d.
m. Bertha Page
Daughter: Annsola, b abt 1923

Frank R.
b. 4/20/1896
d. 12/1977
m. Martha R. ??

Farsina R.
b. abt 1899
d. 1952
m. Edgar Adelbert Spink;
Son: Vance b. 1923, d. 1990
Daughters: Sicret (or Secret) b. 1920
Margie Lou b.1928, d 1928?

Dora S.
b. abt 1900;
d.
m. Richard V. Bowers;
Sons:
Verle A. Bowers, b. 1924
Wayne A. Bowers, b 1923
Charles, abt 1929


Mabel Clair
b. 12 March 1901, Battle Creek, Iowa
d. 16 March 1943, Fairfield, Clay, Nebraska
m. Charles Andrew Goosic
Sons:
George Wray Goosic b. 26 July 1922, died 14 Sept 1984 (my father)
Gerald Goosic b. 1924, d.