Who has to test for BRCA Gene

Remain unconvinced Daisies. There are thousands of VUS and, since, they can’t know what they mean, they don’t make any clinical decisions based on them. One day we’ll know what many of them mean, I hope. 

I paid for genetic test seven years ago which found a BRCA 1 'variant' of unknown significance at that time. Now they are saying it does not give an increased risk. However with grandmother, mother and sister having had breast cancer, and now myself (following DCIS in the same breast seven years ago) I'm not sure I am convinced!

Be sure to check your male lineage as well. And not only the women for breast and ovarian cancer. Look out for males with breast or prostate cancer. 
My mum died aged 40 and I have breast and prostate cancer. I qualified for the genetic test and the result was a BRCA1 mutation but with a variation of unknown significance (VUS). 
With my two adult children, my daughter is in a screening program, but my son has to fend for himself. This needs to change. Breast cancer is genderless and all sexes with two primary relatives having cancer should qualify for screening. 

@Pinkcloverss The ladies above are correct when it comes to the income protection insurance. When i qualified for the test & was sent all the paperwork, with it came a booklet about insurance & I'm looking at it right now. It states that your private health insurance is NOT effected by the genetic test results but Life, Income (Disability), Mortgage & Travel insurance insurability & premiums ARE calculated according to the health of the applicant & their family history. It says that insurers will ask if you know of a family member that has had a genetic test & they can obtain this result with your permission. So it really is involved & can effect your family if they havent got insurance cover or applies for it in the future. It was suggested to me that I ask my close family if they have got the appropriate cover they need & to apply for it before I get the test in case it was positive. 

Correct me if I am wrong, but I think if your breast Ca is  triple negative it may be free also?!
I am not triple neg, but I am going to get tested for it. First reason is I have two young daughters and it is peace of mind to know for them.  Also, even though the chances of being positive are small for me, there is still a chance that it could be positive and as I haven’t had surgery yet it would make a difference to my choice of mastectomy vs lumpectomy. 

My geneticist said something similar about the testing and insurance, but said that as I already had the cancer, it was irrelevant for me.  However, my concern about the genetics was mainly to do with the risk of my kids inheriting a problematic gene.  Given nothing (at least nothing known) came back, there is no issue.  Should they choose to get tested themselves down the track, they would need to consider insurance first.

@KarynJ is correct. Peter Mac genetics section on their website has a good document outlining the legalities. Essentially my geneticist told me get insured before you proceed with testing, because if its positive you are unlikely to get life/trauma/income insurance. I already had some insurance in place so went forward with the testing. But if it comes back negative you don't have a legal obligation to tell them that you have had testing done.

@Pinkcloverss I didn't qualify for the free testing because no immediate family link.  I went to a genetic specialist after all my treatments were finished just for my own peace of mind.  He tested 30 genes for 5-6 common cancers with a saliva test. The test was around $400.  I came back all clear which is about 80% of cases.  However, for my health management going forward, I wanted to know e.g. if the gene for colon cancer came back positive, then I would arrange a colonoscopy every 12 months.  If I'd had BRCA genes, then I would have had to give serious consideration to a preventative mastectomy.

The other part of this puzzle is what you do with the information when you have it.  The specialist advised me that if I tested positive and told my sister or other close relative about this, then if they seek to get income protection insurance or the like, that they may be bound to disclose this information. It may affect their ability to get different types of insurance.  If they don't disclose it and they are affected by cancer, then the insurance company may not pay because it *may* be classed as a pre-existing condition.  I don't know all the legalities around this.

This type of situation is apparently becoming more common in the USA but I don't know how many Australian insurance providers are starting to do this as well.

I just advise caution in regards to giving out results.

@Pinkcloverss I had DCIS Dec. 2017, stage 1 but aggressive, lumpectomy & clear margins. I was advised by my medical team to have the BRCA gene test done as my mum died of ovarian cancer at 46 y.o.. She is the only relative I had with cancer but as it was my mum & she had it so young, I was able to get the test done for free. As has been said above, you have to "qualify", to get it done for free otherwise, you do have to pay. My surgeon did all the ground work for me & advised that I was eligible so your surgeon could do the same. You could also ring the genetics team direct. I had many, many phone calls with them to check in on me & help me with my decision making. They are very thorough.
My rad onc didnt want to begin my radiation treatment until my test was done as depending on the result, it may have altered my course of treatment. If I was positive, I may have wanted to consider a mastectomy to reduce the re-occurrence risk & breast reconstruction is made more difficult after rad treatment as it effects the skin/deep tissue so much. Luckily, my test was negative so things went to plan.
It was a very hard & stressful time with so many ??????. You do have a LOT of paperwork to complete along with an ENORMOUS family tree to complete stating ALL your relatives/cousins & their medical history/DOB/address etc. They use this info to match up with any other of your relatives that may have done the test, sort of joining the dots!! I remember ringing a cousin & asking her help! You then have to see a counselor to discuss what you would do depending on the results & then the simplest of all, having the 1 minute blood test!
My result came through very quickly in about a week as they knew my rad treatment was waiting on the result. The counsellor will ring you with the result. Good luck & if you are eligible, i would recommend doing the test as info is power & it may effect you & your family down the track when it comes to medical decisions. love & hugs xx

At time of my surgery it seemed likely I had a positive gene. The surgeon said to me...it doesn't matter today what your result would be it doesn't change your treatment for breast cancer. And he was right.

I did have testing but results were well after surgery and starting chemo. The knowledge of that was what I do next. I didn't require further surgery which was a bonus. It doesn't need to be known at the beginning but it might be good to have prior radiotherapy if having a lumpectomy, as you may decide to have mastectomy instead. It gives you a little time to make decisions that way.