Abstract
It is important that cancer risk is assessed as accurately as possible in order to give the patient and the clinician the information they need to make risk management decisions. The way in which risk is communicated may be important to patients’ understanding and decisionmaking. Individuals at increased risk because of a cancerpredisposing mutations can sometimes be identified from their family history of cancer. There are key questions that need to be asked about a cancer family history in order to accurately assess risk. Assessing and communicating risk effectively requires time, assessment of prior risk perception and understanding and tailoring of the risk communication to the individual and family. This chapter will explain the principles of risk assessment, discuss the types of risk assessment tool available, consider the factors that can impact on risk perception and present some strategies for risk communication.