By: Judah Gavant, Program Associate, Norton & Elaine Sarnoff Center for Jewish Genetics
In this week’s Torah portion, Lech Lecha, God tells Abram, “Go forth from your land, from your birthplace, and from your father’s house.”
The last phrase has always struck me: “your father’s house.” Even when we leave home, we carry parts of it with us. We inherit traditions, values, family stories, and, of course, our genes.
Many of us are at a stage of life filled with big decisions: where to live, who to build relationships with, and whether to start families of our own. We can’t always know what lies ahead, but having more information can help us make informed choices. That is what our work at the Norton & Elaine Sarnoff Center for Jewish Genetics is all about.
Who We Are
The Sarnoff Center is a genetic health resource for the Chicago Jewish community. We provide education about genetic conditions that are more common in Jewish families and offer access to affordable genetic screening programs. Financial assistance is always available, so cost should never be the reason someone misses out on important health information.
Hereditary Cancer Testing
October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month, which makes this a good time to talk about hereditary cancer testing.
About 1 in 40 Ashkenazi Jews carries a BRCA mutation. In the Sephardic community, it’s about 1 in 140. Both are far higher than the general population, where it’s about 1 in 400. These mutations can significantly increase the risk of breast and ovarian cancer, as well as prostate and pancreatic cancer. This isn’t just a women’s issue. It can affect entire families.
You might be thinking, “There’s no cancer in my family.” But inherited risk doesn’t always show up in family history. Records may be incomplete, relatives may never have been tested, or those conversations may simply never have happened. Genetic screening can uncover information that would otherwise remain unknown, and knowing earlier can lead to more proactive screening, prevention, and care.
Carrier Screening
We also offer a carrier screening program. About 1 in 4 people of Jewish descent carries a genetic mutation they could pass on to a future child, and most carriers have no symptoms and no family history. Our screening panel looks at up to 268 conditions, including many that are more common in people of Jewish ancestry.
How It Works
Both programs are straightforward, and you can complete them together. You register online, complete a brief educational course, receive a saliva kit in the mail, and then meet one-on-one with a genetic counselor who reviews your results and answers any questions.
A Blessing That Reaches Beyond Ourselves
In Lech Lecha, Abram doesn’t begin his journey alone. Sarai goes with him, and God tells him, “V’heyeh bracha,” “You shall be a blessing.”
The information we learn about our health can be that kind of blessing. It doesn’t only affect us. It can benefit our siblings, parents, cousins, future children, and the generations that follow. One person getting screened can have an impact that reaches far beyond themselves.
