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This Fox Chase professor participates in the Undergraduate Summer Research Fellowship.
Learn more about Research Volunteering.
Professor, Department of Clinical Genetics
Former Chair, Department of Clinical Genetics
Director, Risk Assessment Program
Timothy R. Talbot Jr. Chair in Cancer Research
NCCN, Breast Cancer Risk Reduction Panel Member
NCCN, Breast Cancer Screening and Diagnosis Panel Member
NCCN, Genetic/Familial High-Risk Assessment: Breast and Ovarian Panel Member
Clinical Genetics; breast cancer; Risk Assessment; chemoprevention research; family risk assessment and genetic testing; epidemiology; gynecologic cancers
I consider it an honor and a privilege to have the opportunity to accompany my patients on their cancer journey. I am allowed to witness their strength and courage, to be exposed to the devotion of their families and friends, and to become part of their lives in a very special way.
By extending this care to family members through the risk assessment program, we can work together towards the reduction of risk and prevention of cancer. I like to approach every patient encounter as a mutual learning experience. It is an opportunity for me to share with each patient the latest information about their cancer and treatment or their cancer risk, and give them the tools they need to make informed decisions.
It is also an opportunity for them to teach me something about themselves, about their lives and families, and how they cope with illness and promote their own health. I always feel both drained and enriched after a day in clinic.
I was a first grade teacher for six years before becoming a reading specialist for kids with learning disabilities. After having four children of my own, I decided to be a stay-at-home mom and teach my children, along with my nieces and nephews.
I am BRCA1 and BRCA2 positive, meaning I have mutations in those two genes that make me more susceptible to cancer. When I was 67 years old, I was diagnosed with premalignant pancreatic cysts and anal cancer in the same year.
Linda Snow was active, maintained a healthy diet, and underwent genetic testing, followed by two double mastectomies and a hysterectomy. So she was shocked that even with all of these precautionary procedures that she still got breast cancer. Linda sought treatment at Fox Chase Cancer Center, where she met with her treatment team. After a long road, she is now cancer free and credits her survival to Fox Chase. "Where you start your cancer treatment really does make a difference," said Linda. "You have got to act with a sense of urgency because it can mean the difference between life and death. I unequivocally believe that I am alive today because I chose Fox Chase."
In May 2008, Denise Portner, 45, underwent genetic testing that showed she carried the BRCA2 mutation, just like her mother and aunt, who had breast cancer. Genetic counselors at this hospital advised her to consider prophylactic oophorectomy, a surgical procedure to remove one or both of her ovaries to help reduce her risk for breast and ovarian cancers. Denise decided to get a second opinion from the Risk Assessment Program at Fox Chase Cancer Center, and on June 16, 2009, she learned that she had breast cancer, which changed her treatment plans. Instead, she had a double mastectomy that summer, followed by chemotherapy and radiation therapy, and, later, the originally planned oophorectomy. "It was a challenging ride, but I always felt that I was getting the best possible treatment and that I was fortunate to have a world-class cancer center within a 10-minute drive of my home," Denise said. "If I had not been aware of my genetic status, I would not have had the MRI and would not have known that I had breast cancer."
The Risk Assessment Program at Fox Chase looks at your personal and possible inherited genetic factors that may put you at higher possibility for getting cancer. We comprehensively examine your profile for all cancer types, including — but not limited to — breast cancer, ovarian cancer, gastrointestinal cancers, prostate cancer, and melanoma. Knowing your risk helps you learn what you can do to lower your chances of getting cancer.
The Department of Clinical Genetics is built on the success of Fox Chase's Margaret Dyson Family Risk Assessment Program (now Risk Assessment Program), which Dr. Mary Daly began in 1991. A high-risk screening clinic was developed for individuals with a family history of breast or ovarian cancer. In addition to the clinic, genetic counseling was provided for both high risk and breast and ovarian cancer patients. As the clinic developed, it became clear that it was important to provide consultations for biopsy findings that put women at increased risk. Since then, Fox Chase has expanded risk assessment services to those at high risk for all cancers.
Pal T, Agnese D, Daly M, La Spada A, Litton J, Wick M, Klugman S, Esplin ED, Jarvik GP, Professional Practice G. Points to consider: is there evidence to support BRCA1/2 and other inherited breast cancer genetic testing for all breast cancer patients? A statement of the American College of Medical Genetics and Genomics (ACMG). Genetics in Medicine, 22(4):681-5, 2020.
Houghton LC, Knight JA, Wei Y, Romeo RD, Goldberg M, Andrulis IL, Bradbury AR, Buys SS, Daly MB, John EM, Chung WK, Santella RM, Stanczyk FZ, Terry MB. “Association of Prepubertal and Adolescent Androgen Concentrations With Timing of Breast Development and Family History of Breast Cancer”. JAMA Netw Open. 2019 Feb 1;2(2):e190083. doi:10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2019.0083. PMID: 30794303
Terry MB, Daly MB, Phillips KA, Ma X, Zeinomar N, Leoce N, Dite GS, MacInnis RJ, Chung WK, Knight JA, Southey MC, Milne RL, Goldgar D, Giles GG, Weideman PC, Glendon G; kConFab Investigators, Buchsbaum R, Andrulis IL, John EM, Buys SS, Hopper JL. “Risk-Reducing Oophorectomy and Breast Cancer Risk Across the Spectrum of Familial Risk”.J Natl Cancer Inst. 2018 Nov 28. doi: 10.1093/jnci/djy182. [Epub ahead of print] PMID:30496449
Nicolas E, Demidova EV, Iqbal W, Serebriiskii IG, Vlasenkova R, Ghatalia P, Zhou Y, Rainey K, Forman AF, Dunbrack RL Jr, Golemis EA, Hall MJ, Daly MB, Arora S. Interaction of germline variants in a family with a history of early-onset clear cell renal cell carcinoma. Mol Genet Genomic Med. 2019 Mar;7(3):e556. doi: 10.1002/mgg3.556. Epub 2019 Jan 24. PMID: 30680959; PMCID: PMC6418363.
Frost CJ, Andrulis IL, Buys SS, Hopper JL, John EM, Terry MB, Bradbury A, Chung WK, Colbath K, Quintana N, Gamarra E, Egleston B, Galpern N, Bealin L, Glendon G, Patrick Miller L, Daly MB. “Assessing Patient Readiness for Personalized Genomic Medicine”. Journal of Community Genetics, 10 (1), 109-120. Received: 26 June 2017 /Accepted: 18 April 2018 https://doi.org/10.1007/s12687-018-0365-5 EPUB ahead of print 5.29.18
Wolf SM, Scholtes E, Koenig BA, Petersen GM, Berry SA, Beskow LM, Daly MB, Fernandez CV, Green RC, LeRoy BS, Lindor NM, O'Rourke PP, Breitkopf CR, Rothstein MA, Van Ness B, Wilfond BS. “Pragmatic Tools for Sharing Genomic Research Results with the Relatives of Living and Deceased Research Participants”. J Law Med Ethics. 2018 Mar;46(1):87-109. doi: 10.1177/1073110518766024. Epub 2018 Mar 27. No abstract available.
Buys, S.S., Sandbach, J.F., Gammon, A., Patel, G., Kidd, J., Brown, K.L., Sharma, L., Saam, J., Lancaster, J., Daly, M.B. “A Study of Over 35,000 Women with Breast Cancer Tested with a 25-gene Panel of Hereditary Cancer Genes,” Cancer 2017 May 15; 123(10): 1721-1730. doi: 10l1002/cncr.30498.
Daly, M.B., Montgomery, S., Bingler, R., Ruth, K. “Communicating Genetic Test Results within the Family: Is it Lost in Translation: A Survey of Relatives in the Randomized Six-Step Study,” Familial Cancer 2016;15(4):697-706. (PMCID: PMC5010833).
This Fox Chase professor participates in the Undergraduate Summer Research Fellowship.
Learn more about Research Volunteering.
