Doctors often advise women to remove the ovaries and fallopian tubes, if they have the BRCA mutated gene, which significantly increases the risk of ovarian cancer and breast cancer. Currently, women offer surgery if they have a 10% lifetime risk of developing ovarian cancer, which doctors can be calculated by examining the genes and analysis of family history. But now experts want to lower the threshold to 4%, which would allow a greater number of women go through life-saving operation.

A team of researchers from the Queen Mary University of London and University College London, believes that this strategy would save many more lives, effectively reducing the risk of ovarian cancer and breast cancer. Early diagnosis of these diseases is the key to survival, but three-quarters of women diagnosed with the disease, when the cancer has already spread, with the result that it is difficult to treat. Spaying before showing any signs of cancer very significantly reduces the risk of cancer, as a mutant BRCA1 gene increase the risk of developing ovarian cancer from 1.3% to 39%.