BRCA2 DNA repair associated
Last updated 3 Apr 2025
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The BRCA2 gene provides instructions for making a protein that acts as a tumour suppressor. Tumour suppressor proteins help prevent cells from growing and dividing too rapidly or in an uncontrolled way.
Normal function
The BRCA2 gene provides instructions for making a protein that acts as a tumour suppressor. Tumour suppressor proteins help prevent cells from growing and dividing too rapidly or in an uncontrolled way.
The BRCA2 protein is involved in repairing damaged DNA. In the nucleus of many types of normal cells, the BRCA2 protein interacts with several other proteins to mend breaks in DNA. These breaks can be caused by natural and medical radiation or other environmental exposures, and they also occur when chromosomes exchange genetic material in preparation for cell division. By helping to repair DNA, the BRCA2 protein plays a critical role in maintaining the stability of a cell's genetic information.
Researchers suspect that the BRCA2 protein has additional functions within cells. For example, the protein may help regulate cytokinesis, which is the step in cell division when the fluid surrounding the nucleus (the cytoplasm) divides to form two separate cells. Researchers are investigating the protein's other potential activities.
Conditions referring to this gene or chromosome
Other names
brca 2 gene
BRCA2_HUMAN
BRCC2
breast cancer 2
breast cancer 2 gene
breast cancer 2, early onset
breast cancer 2, early onset gene
breast cancer type 2 susceptibility gene
breast cancer type 2 susceptibility protein
FACD
FAD
FAD1
FANCB
FANCD1
Related patient information and medicines
Patient information leaflet
BRCA genes
There are a few known gene changes (mutations) that can increase the risk of certain cancers, and tests available for some of them, including BRCA1 and BRCA2 gene mutations. The BRCA1 and BRCA2 genes normally protect against certain cancers, particularly breast cancer and ovarian cancer. If there is a mutation in one of these genes then this may.
Patient information leaflet
Breast cancer in men
What is breast cancer. Family history. Some breast cancers are caused by a flawed gene. The main gene which can cause men to be more at risk of breast cancer is the BRCA2 gene. If two or more of your close family have developed breast cancer, particularly if they had it under the age of 50, you may also be at risk of breast cancer. For example, if.
Patient information leaflet
Breast cancer facts and risk factors
There are three genes that have been identified that may be faulty. The fault is also called a mutation. When they are faulty, they are particularly associated with breast cancer. These are the BRCA1, the BRCA2 and the TP53 gene mutations. If you carry one or more of these mutations you have an increased risk of developing breast cancer (and.
Patient information leaflet
Ovarian cancer
Some women, trans men and non-binary people are referred for genetic testing if a faulty gene is suspected on the basis of a strong family history of certain cancers. The most common genes are BRCA1 and BRCA2. For example, if you have two or more close relatives who have had ovarian or breast cancer at a young age (or certain other cancers), you.
Patient information leaflet
Breast screening
All women in the UK who are aged between 50 and 70 are invited to a breast screening test every three years to look for early signs of breast cancer. What is breast screening (mammogram). ... You have a father or brother (first-degree male relative) who has had breast cancer at any age. You are known to have a gene which makes you more prone to.
Patient information leaflet
Genetic testing
Genetic testing is a type of medical test that identifies changes in chromosomes, genes or proteins. Predictive testing Predictive t... These tests can be helpful to people who have a family member with a genetic disorder but who have no features of the disorder themselves at the time of testing (for example, breast cancer associated with the.
Further reading and references
- BRCA2 DNA repair associated; MedlinePlus, National Library of Medicine.
- Chen S, Parmigiani G. Meta-analysis of BRCA1 and BRCA2 penetrance. J Clin Oncol. 2007 Apr 10;25(11):1329-33. doi: 10.1200/JCO.2006.09.1066.
- Foulkes WD, Shuen AY. In brief: BRCA1 and BRCA2. J Pathol. 2013 Aug;230(4):347-9. doi: 10.1002/path.4205.
- Foulkes WD. BRCA1 and BRCA2 - update and implications on the genetics of breast cancer: a clinical perspective. Clin Genet. 2014 Jan;85(1):1-4. doi: 10.1111/cge.12291. Epub 2013 Oct 25. No abstract available.
- Friebel TM, Domchek SM, Rebbeck TR. Modifiers of cancer risk in BRCA1 and BRCA2 mutation carriers: systematic review and meta-analysis. J Natl Cancer Inst. 2014 Jun;106(6):dju091. doi: 10.1093/jnci/dju091.
- Kobayashi H, Ohno S, Sasaki Y, Matsuura M. Hereditary breast and ovarian cancer susceptibility genes (review). Oncol Rep. 2013 Sep;30(3):1019-29. doi: 10.3892/or.2013.2541. Epub 2013 Jun 19.
- National Cancer Institute: Genetics of Breast and Gynecologic Cancers (PDQ®)–Health Professional Version
- Nelson HD, Fu R, Goddard K, Mitchell JP, Okinaka-Hu L, Pappas M, Zakher B. Risk Assessment, Genetic Counseling, and Genetic Testing for BRCA-Related Cancer: Systematic Review to Update the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force Recommendation [Internet]. Rockville (MD): Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (US); 2013 Dec. Report No.: 12-05164-EF-1. Available from http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK179201/
- Pennington KP, Swisher EM. Hereditary ovarian cancer: beyond the usual suspects. Gynecol Oncol. 2012 Feb;124(2):347-53. doi: 10.1016/j.ygyno.2011.12.415.
- Petrucelli N, Daly MB, Pal T. BRCA1- and BRCA2-Associated Hereditary Breast and Ovarian Cancer. 1998 Sep 4 [updated 2026 Mar 25]. In: Adam MP, Bick S, Mirzaa GM, Wallace SE, Amemiya A, editors. GeneReviews(R) [Internet]. Seattle (WA): University of Washington, Seattle; 1993-2026. Available from http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK1247/
- Shahid T, Soroka J, Kong E, Malivert L, McIlwraith MJ, Pape T, West SC, Zhang X. Structure and mechanism of action of the BRCA2 breast cancer tumor suppressor. Nat Struct Mol Biol. 2014 Nov;21(11):962-968. doi: 10.1038/nsmb.2899. Epub 2014 Oct 5.
- Shulman LP. Hereditary breast and ovarian cancer (HBOC): clinical features and counseling for BRCA1 and BRCA2, Lynch syndrome, Cowden syndrome, and Li-Fraumeni syndrome. Obstet Gynecol Clin North Am. 2010 Mar;37(1):109-33, Table of Contents. doi: 10.1016/j.ogc.2010.03.003.
- Toss A, Tomasello C, Razzaboni E, Contu G, Grandi G, Cagnacci A, Schilder RJ, Cortesi L. Hereditary ovarian cancer: not only BRCA 1 and 2 genes. Biomed Res Int. 2015;2015:341723. doi: 10.1155/2015/341723. Epub 2015 May 17.
- Wagner JE, Tolar J, Levran O, Scholl T, Deffenbaugh A, Satagopan J, Ben-Porat L, Mah K, Batish SD, Kutler DI, MacMillan ML, Hanenberg H, Auerbach AD. Germline mutations in BRCA2: shared genetic susceptibility to breast cancer, early onset leukemia, and Fanconi anemia. Blood. 2004 Apr 15;103(8):3226-9. doi: 10.1182/blood-2003-09-3138. Epub 2004 Jan 8.
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