Cancer-Related Genetic Testing and Counseling

These proceedings of a workshop presented to the Institute of Medicine's (IOM) National Cancer Policy Forum on March 30, 2007, are the result of forum discussions about genetic testing and counseling at its meetings on June 16 and October 30, 2006. Those discussions, led by forum members Betty Ferrell and Patricia Ganz, noted that genetic testing and counseling are becoming more complex and important for informing patients and families of risks and benefits of certain courses of action, and yet organized expert programs are in short supply. The subject matter involves not only the scientific and clinical aspects but also workforce and reimbursement issues, among others. Drs. Ferrell and Ganz proposed that the forum could provide a useful review of the various important implications of these issues by holding and reporting a workshop on the subject. They volunteered to work with staff to organize and lead such a workshop. The agenda for the workshop is reproduced in the appendix to these proceedings. It includes the presentations of the invited speakers and the comments of speakers, forum members, and others in attendance as transcribed and edited to eliminate redundancies, grammatical errors, and otherwise make them more readable. Cancer-Related Genetic Testing and Counseling : Workshop Proceedings summarizes the workshop.