Submit Your Story
Informed Consent
By submitting a story through this website form, you agree that you willingly and with fully informed consent volunteered to share your story of the BRCA gene in your life on the BRCAinBC website. In participating in this project, you fully acknowledge your responsibility regarding any risks or potential consequences of sharing your story with the public online and will in no way hold those involved with developing the BRCAinBC website liable for any consequences that may result from sharing this story. The BRCAinBC website is a non-commercial health and community education site and your story will be shared only for the express purpose of providing education to the community about the BRCA gene and potential related issues. If you choose to share your story anonymously, once all identifiers are removed, the original documents you provide to the Project Manager will be destroyed. All documents will be stored in a password-protected computer that can only be accessed by the Project Manager. All items received will be protected through an encrypted email server (GoDaddy Proofpoint Email Encryption). You can request to have your story removed from the website and all materials destroyed at any time by contacting the Project Manager. Your story remains your personal property and the BRCAinBC website has no rights to use your story for any other purposes other than those expressly articulated in this agreement.
About the Project Manager
Catriona Remocker received her Masters in Public Health in Social and Behavioural Health Sciences from the University of Toronto in 2013. She has since worked with the Canadian Institute for Substance Use Research’s Knowledge Mobilization branch primarily supporting work in mental health and substance use on BC’s post-secondary campuses. She also completed an advanced post-graduate diploma in Couple and Family Therapy from Living Systems Counselling, Education, & Research Society in 2016 and is a Registered Clinical Counsellor in private practice in Vancouver, BC. Her work often involves managing sensitive health information and issues of confidentiality with vulnerable populations.
Writing Your Story
In 500 words or fewer, please describe your experience with learning about the BRCA gene in your own life or the life of a family member(s). The focus of the experience should be around what testing for the gene has offered you in terms of your health or your cancer journey. Please feel free to change key details if you wish to remain anonymous or protect various identities. We can also help you edit your story if you need assistance in how to keep private details private.
Questions to consider in the construction of your story
When and how did you first come to understand that you or a family member carried one of the BRCA genes?
Was it a surprise to learn your family carried the gene? Why or why not?
What have been some important or key moments throughout this experience?
How has knowing your carrier status affected your life, health, and well-being?
How did finding out about the gene affect the family? What were some of the challenges the family has faced?
Would you recommend that others find out their carrier status? Why or why not?
What are some lessons learned through your experience that you might share with others?
Our questions to you
Would you like to publish your story anonymously or under a pseudonym?
What concerns do you have about writing or publishing your story on the BRCAinBC website? How might we best address those concerns?