Gaps exist in receipt of clinically indicated genetic counseling after breast cancer diagnosis

A minority of patients (43.5%) with an indication for breast cancer genetic risk evaluation actually received formal genetic counseling in clinical practice, according to an analysis of NCI Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) data published in Journal of Clinical Oncology.

More expertise is required in genetic counseling, either formal counseling given by an expert, or by a cancer physician (physician-directed), wrote Steven J. Katz and his colleagues at the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor. With BRCA1/2-only testing, being replaced by multi-gene panel testing, further consideration and/or discussion of results and formulation of a management plan is required, they said.

Of 5,080 women with favorable breast cancer prognosis identified in the SEER registries between 2013 and 2015 in Georgia and Los Angeles County, 1,171 were identified as having clinical indications for formal genetic risk evaluation according to NCCN guidelines.

Of those, 47.4% did not get tested, 40.7% tested negative, 7.4% had a variant of uncertain significance only, and 4.5% had a pathogenic mutation. Three quarters (74.6%) received some form of genetic counseling (43.5%, formal counseling and 31.1%, physician-directed discussion). Almost all tested patients (96.1%) reported some form of genetic discussion. One half (50.6%) of those not tested received any discussion about genetics, reported the authors.