The not-for-profit healthcare organisation Sanford Health is planning to implement routine genetic testing for patients to identify a patient’s risk for a range of rare, and more common, diseases. The full article can be read here, at The Dickinson Press.
Nate White, the executive vice president of Sanford Health Fargo, says of the company’s plan to introduce the routine primary care clinical genetic screening,
“nobody else in the world is doing this.”
Under their new plan, patients will be able to go to a primary care clinic and give a blood sample. This will then be analysed for approximately sixty diseases that have genetic links. At a cost of $49, the test is designed to be affordable for most families despite not being covered by healthcare insurance. The diseases screened for include heart conditions, cancers (including breast, ovarian, retinoblastoma, thyroid, Wilm’s tumour, and Lynch syndrome), and other conditions, such as Wilson disease, which causes copper accumulation in the brain, eyes, and liver.
The results of this test can be used to guide treatment plans for a patient. For example, somebody with an increased genetic risk of breast cancer may be advised to attend regular screenings to ensure that if it does develop that it is diagnosed and treated at an early stage. The diseases assessed in the test were specifically chosen to be ones that patients could take action on if they discovered they were high risk. The blood test also identifies genetic predispositions to drug and gene interactions, which can help to inform doctors about the best course of treatment. By learning about a patient’s genetic makeup, Sanford hopes that medical professionals will be able to give more individualised advice. Dr Hajek, a medical geneticist from Sanford, says,
“A key piece of our program is that we strive to provide actionable information that could help improve care for patients.”
The first stage of the genetic screening tests is planned to be implemented mid-year. Later stages will be introduced gradually over the next couple of years. Patients who wish to enroll will take part in an informed consent process that uses videos to help patients understand the testing. They will also receive follow-up care from a genetic counsellor.
This makes the tests different to the testing kits that some companies sell directly to customers, which The American College of Medical Genetics and Genomics do not endorse. They say that although it is important for people to understand their genetics, this should be done in a clinical setting where there will be appropriate guidance and information protection. The diseases of Sanford’s test remain confidential and do not affect the cost of any health insurance plans that a patient uses, which would be illegal under current U.S. law.
