Family history of breast cancer makes women reluctant to use genetic tests. (Less Than 50% of Americans Know of Tests).

BALTIMORE -- About 44% of U.S. adults are aware that genetic rests exist that can identify people with inherited cancer susceptibility, based on a survey of more than 27,000 people.

But many women with a personal or family history of breast or ovarian cancer were reluctant to undergo testing out of fear of discrimination by insurance companies or employers if they were to have a positive test, according to a survey of 137 women seen at one medical system in Cleveland.

Awareness of genetic tests for cancer among 27,211 men and women from throughout the United States was assessed with a question included in the National Health Interview Survey in 2000. In response to the question, "Have you ever heard of genetic testing to determine if a person is at a greater risk for developing cancer?" almost 44% answered yes, Susan S. Thomas Vadaparamil, Ph.D., said at the annual meeting of the American Society of Human Genetics.

This level of awareness was consistent with the results from other recent surveys, which found that 33%-77% of U.S. adults knew about these tests, said Dr. Thomas, a researcher in the division of cancer epidemiology and genetics at the National Cancer Institute in Bethesda, Md.

The analysis also examined the impact of several demographic factors on awareness. The strongest association was with education. Compared with people whose education continued beyond the college level, those who were college graduates were 37% less likely to be aware of genetic tests for cancer, and those with a high school education only were 63% less likely to be aware of these tests.

People aged 40-59 years were 38% more likely to be aware of the tests than those aged 60 years or older. People aged 25-39 years were I 11% more likely to be aware of the tests than those in the oldest age group. When analyzed by race, whites were most likely to be aware of the tests. African Americans were 34% less likely to know about the tests, ...