(NewsNation) — As Breast Cancer Awareness Month gets underway, health experts are urging women to take advantage of early detection resources, starting with a simple online test.
The Breast Cancer Risk Assessment Tool, also known as the Gail Model, is an online calculator that helps physicians estimate a patient’s risk of developing invasive breast cancer over the next five years and up to age 90. According to the National Cancer Institute, the eight-question test uses “a woman’s personal medical and reproductive history and the history of breast cancer among her first-degree relatives (mother, sisters, daughters)” to determine the risk score.
In an interview with Business Insider, actress Olivia Munn said she and her doctor discovered her lifetime risk assessment score was 37%, even though her mammogram, ultrasound, and tests for a cancer gene mutation all came back negative. Concerned with the score, Munn decided to get an MRI scan, which can be a more effective screening tool for women with higher breast density. She was ultimately diagnosed with Stage 1 breast cancer in 2023 and went on to have a double mastectomy. Munn credits her doctor’s encouragement to take the test with saving her life.
“I’m lucky. We caught it with enough time that I had options. I want the same for any woman who might have to face this one day,” Munn wrote in an Instagram post. “Ask your doctors to calculate your Breast Cancer Risk Assessment Score.”
So, what scores should you keep an eye on? According to the Cleveland Clinic, a five-year risk score of 1.67% or more is considered high-risk. The clinic also notes that the Gail Model doesn’t predict breast cancer risk for everyone and can be unreliable for those who have previously been diagnosed with breast cancer or who carry a genetic mutation. Patients with a lifetime risk score of 20% or higher are also considered high-risk.
There are additional risk assessment tools patients can explore, including the Tyrer-Cuzick model, which factors in ovarian cancer as part of the evaluation. Health experts urge patients to talk with their physicians about screening options and other early detection resources. According to the American Cancer Society, American women face a 1-in-8 chance of developing breast cancer in their lifetime.