Ever since FORCE coined the word “previvors” in 2000, the word has been slowly gaining ground. And this year, it seems to have really burst into the limelight: It was featured on CNN, The Today Show, and in Glamour magazine. The book I wrote, Previvors: Facing the Breast Cancer Gene and Making Life-Changing Decisions, was published by Penguin. And, thanks to FORCE, Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz, Bright Pink, and the Young Survival Coalition, the last Wednesday of September is now officially National Previvor Day.

However, with increased awareness comes increased confusion. Many people seem to misunderstand what the word “previvors” really means. I hope to help clear things up a bit.

A previvor is a person who has not had cancer but has a predisposition to develop it. As FORCE states, previvors are “survivors of a predisposition.” That’s straighforward enough, but plenty of people and media outlets have seem to interpreted the definition a little differently. The two biggest misconceptions:

1. Misconception#1: Previvors are only people with BRCA mutations. While it’s true that people who test positive are previvors, we’re missing a big part of the picture. Plenty of people with a high risk for breast cancer don’t have a BRCA mutation. In other words, a person can test negative but still have a high risk because of a strong family history and other risk factors. For instance, a woman might have risk factors such as dense breasts, a history of abnormal biopsy results, or chest radiation due to treatment for Hodgkin’s lymphoma or other diseases. Our risk depends on many different variables. Not just the results of one test.

2. Misconception #2: Previvors are only people who have prophylactic surgeries. This one is a biggie, thanks in large part to the fact that the media has really latched onto stories about women who have undergone such operations. Of course, plenty of previvors do ultimately choose to have their healthy breast tissue and/or ovaries removed. But plenty don’t. Many choose to live healthier lifestyles and increase their surveillance. Others choose to take risk-reducing drugs like tamoxifen. And some high risk women opt not to do anything to lower their odds. But they are all still previvors.

Also, it’s important to note that many women who undergo prophylactic surgeries only do so after years, even decades, of trying other options. Most previvors don’t immediately book a surgery the second they find out they have a BRCA mutation or other significant risk factor. They usually first try to come to terms with their risk, ideally with the help of certified genetics experts. Then, they can discuss what their next steps might be.

Of course, as the word “previvors” becomes a household term, there will only be more questions about what it means. Here’s the bottom line: If a person has a high risk for cancer for any reason and has not yet had the disease, that person is a previvor. But luckily we live in a time when, if we choose to do so, we can take steps to protect ourselves in ways that previous generations never could. The key is to know your options and then make decisions that are best for you.