My mum is 8 years clear of breast cancer this year. She had a full mastectomy and three months of chemo. She finally braved a reconstruction last year when she felt secure that she was disease free. A friend of hers is 2 years clear now, following a lumpectomy and radiotherapy. 2 of my aunts have also had breast cancer, but luckily I haven't lost anyone to it yet. We've caught it in time in each case so far.
Although I'm not from here, the NHS has been quite helpful to me and done a genetic case history study for my family (as they do for anyone with several relatives with any type of cancer) to work out the probability of it being a hereditary cancer. I'm sure if you contacted either your local NHS trust or MacMillan nurses station, they's be more than happy to help.....after all, knowledge is power! If you don't know the symptoms, you'll never spot the disease. Best of luck with the project.x