A strong family history of cancer can spark fear, worry and, as in the case of Robin Ehrmann, action.

Breast cancer showed up repeatedly in Robin’s family: in her grandmother, her mother, and most recently in her sister. This prompted Robin to seek genetic testing and counseling at Hunterdon Regional Cancer Center. She discovered she had a genetic mutation that indicated a very high risk for breast cancer.

Even though she was cancer-free, Robin struggled with the uncertainty of her situation and, as a result, elected to have a prophylactic bilateral mastectomy.

“With this information available, I had a choice,” explains Robin, a 33-year-old stay-at-home mom and marketing consultant. “Do I want to wait for cancer to happen? Or be proactive and do everything in my power to prevent it?”

Robin was scared at first, but she also felt empowered. “With the research, guidance and support of every doctor I met with, I thought, if I do this, it will greatly reduce my risk of getting breast cancer,” she says.