Gene may double breast cancer risk But mutation isn't worth testing for, researchers say

LOS ANGELES--Researchers have identified a gene that when mutatedcan lead to an elevated but modest risk of breast cancer.

The altered gene, called CHEK2 or CHK2, can double the estimated13 percent lifetime risk of breast cancer that U.S. women face,researchers said.

About 1 percent of people-- both women and men--carry the mutatedgene.

Carrying it does not necessarily mean someone will develop breastcancer, the scientists stressed. Instead, the risk is comparable tothat faced by women who have a mother or sister with breast cancer,who never have children or who experience menopause at a later age.

"CHK2 is not something anyone should go out and get …