As of today, Lincoln Daily News is halfway through its month of breast cancer awareness pink shirt pictures. The two photos in today’s edition are family-owned businesses in Logan County, Sorrento’s Pizzeria in Lincoln and Gail’s Pumpkin Patch of rural Beason.

Family. It is a wonderful word for most of us and we look forward to having those strong family connections such as sharing common beliefs, sharing physical appearance similarities, sharing history and heritage.

Family is also a key word sometimes in diagnosing cancer. Knowing your family history of any type of cancer can give doctors insight into what may be going on in your body. To that end, the American Cancer Society has invested funds in helping identify genetic connections to cancer. This includes testing for the BRCA2 gene mutation that can tell us if we have the potential to pass along breast cancer within our family.

Having this valuable information can help lead to early detection or even avoidance of cancer diagnosis in future generations. If you have a family history of breast cancer, speak with your doctor about the BRCA2 test for yourself and your loved ones.