How Have Multigene Panels Changed the Clinical Practice of Genetic Counseling and Testing.

How Have Multigene Panels Changed the Clinical Practice of Genetic Counseling and Testing. J Natl Compr Canc Netw. 2021 Jan 06;19(1):103-108 Authors: Pilarski R Abstract Historically, genetic testing (and billing) for hereditary cancer risk was essentially performed gene by gene, with clinicians ordering testing only for the genes most likely to explain a patient's or family's cancer presentation, with laboratories typically charging $1,000 to $1,500 for each gene that was sequenced. Given the expense, only patients at high risk of having a hereditary syndrome were offered testing. With the introduction of next-generation sequencing technologies, however, laboratories are able to test for multiple genes at the same time with greater efficiency, significantly decreased costs, and relatively little increased expense when adding additional genes. This has drastically altered clinical practice so that clinicians now typically order testing for a panel of multiple genes for most patients. Although this approach has streamlined the diagnostic odyssey, it has introduced several problems, as well, including difficulties in choosing the appropriate panel test for a given patient, assessing the significance of identified genetic variants (including variants of uncertain significance [VUS]), and understanding the disease risks and management associated with pathogenic variants in a given gene. Many laboratories offer testing for genes that have...
Source: Journal of the National Comprehensive Cancer Network : JNCCN - Category: Cancer & Oncology Tags: J Natl Compr Canc Netw Source Type: research