When Ben Neat heard about a genetic screening study that Monash University was conducting, he thought it might be a good opportunity to fill in gaps in his medical history.

"There's a bit of an adoption background in my family," Mr Neat told triple j hack. Loading...

There weren't any illnesses in his immediate family that raised red flags for him. So when the results came back showing Mr Neat carried the gene mutation PALB2 — a variant that increased his risk of certain cancers — he was shocked.

"There was a slight bit of cancer on my dad's side, but it was actually my mum's side that carries the gene, so that was a major surprise,"

he said.

The Monash University study tested 10,000 people aged between 18 and 40 for genetic variants that could lead to an elevated risk of some canc

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