Believe it or not, some women have to make this decision.
Here's the problem: if you carry the BRCA 1 or 2 gene for breast and ovarian cancer, most health insurance companies will expect you to be proactive and do something to reduce your increased risk.
This could mean doing bilateral prophylactic (preventive) mastectomies and bilateral oopherectomies (removal of both ovaries) to reduce your risk as much as possible.
Not all women who carry a BRCA gene go on to develop breast cancer, though close to 70 percent do. Some women prefer a program of aggressive close monitoring and perhaps a course of hormonal therapy, rather than the loss of their breasts, to reduce their risk.
If a woman who chooses the more conservative course later develops breast cancer, however, her insurance company may remind her of her previously known BRCA-positive status, classify this as a "pre-existing condition," and deny coverage for her breast cancer treatment.
One way some people have tried to circumvent this problem is to withhold the results of their genetic testing from their insurance company. How? By paying for the test out of pocket and having no records sent to their insurance company about it.
At $3400, it's an expensive test. Some women pay out of pocket for the test up front. If the result is negative, they then seek reimbursement from the insurance company; if it's positive, they never tell.
What decision do you think you would make if you were in this situation?