When Jesse J, Christina Applegate and Katie Thurston spoke openly about their mastectomies, their candour did more than share private struggles. It highlighted a procedure that, while often life saving, is unevenly available depending on the genetic lottery into which someone is born.

A mastectomy – the surgical removal of breast tissue – is usually offered after a breast cancer diagnosis or when doctors consider a person’s inherited genetic risk so high that prevention becomes the safest option. For many, it can mean the difference between life and death. Yet who qualifies is dictated less by need than by which specific genes are affected. This disparity reveals deeper questions about genetics, prevention and medical equity.

The human body contains trillions of cells carrying out processes essential for survival. These processes are not flawless – billions of cells die each day as part of a system designed to limit damage. Central to this system is the copying and expression of DNA, the genetic script from which our bodies are built. Mistakes in this process sometimes lead to........

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