Women with a family history of breast cancer may increase the risk of developing the disease through exposure to chest X-ray radiation, results of research suggested on Tuesday.

A study of 1,600 women with defective BRCA 1 and BRCA 2 gene mutations, which are linked to breast cancer, found that they were 54 percent more likely to suffer the disease if they had had a chest X-ray. For women given chest X-rays before the age of 20, the risk of developing breast cancer before their 40th birthday doubled, London's Times newspaper reported on Tuesday.

The study was carried out by scientists at the International Agency for Research on Cancer in Lyons, France, according to newspaper.

This is one of the first studies to demonstrate that women genetically predisposed to breast cancer may be more susceptible to low-dose ionizing radiation than other women, the researchers said. They advised young women, who are members of families known to have BRCA 1 or BRCA 2 mutations, to consider alternatives to X-rays, such as magnetic resonance imaging (MRI).

BRCA 1 and BRCA 2 are genes that make proteins involved in repairing damage to DNA in breast cells. Inheriting a copy of either BRCA 1 or BRCA 2 means that a woman has an 80 percent chance of developing breast cancer before the age of 70, compared to around 10 percent for other women.

However, only a small percentage of breast cancers are linked to the genes. Gene testing is recommended only for women with a strong family history of breast cancer: two close relatives who have the disease, or one who has developed it at a very young age.

Source: Xinhua