- By Meagan Farmer
- Posted February 21, 2024
A GC’s Perspective on Lab Expertise: Getting Answers After Years of Uncertainty
Kaitlin Stokes is a genetic counselor at Houston Methodist West in Houston, TX. She sees patients with personal or family histories of cancer that may be due to an underlying hereditary cause. We recently connected with Kaitlin about her role, and she shared, “I love what I do because I feel like I’m helping people. I’m giving them control…
- By Meghan Towne, MS, CGC, LCGC
- Posted January 30, 2024
Ambry Collaborations with GeneMatcher Help Further Disease Gene Discovery and Improve Diagnostic Rates
The Problem of Unsolved Cases While our knowledge of human genetics has grown significantly, many gaps remain in our understanding of genes and their contribution to human disease.1-3 We have a lot to learn: • Only about 16% of all the genes in the human body have an established disease association. • The genetic cause is known for…
- By Marcy Richardson, PhD
- Posted December 19, 2023
The Path to Clinical Relevance: What a Study on RAD51C Reveals about Resolving VUS
Everyone has genetic variation….and lots of it. It’s part of what makes us each unique. Genetic variation is defined by differences in our own genome and a reference genome. (The fact that there is only one reference genome selected to compare to all of our collective, rich, human diversity is a topic for another post.) Another source of genetic…
- By Shuwei Li
- Posted August 21, 2018
Science In 60: Tumor Characteristics Provide Evidence for Mismatch Repair Variant Pathogenicity
It is estimated that as many as 1 in 300 people may carry a gene mutation associated with Lynch syndrome. This is important to know because Lynch syndrome also puts individuals at a higher risk for many other cancers including colon, uterine, ovarian, pancreatic, stomach, liver and bladder cancer. The good news is genetic testing can determine…
- By Rhonda Lassiter
- Posted August 10, 2018
Science in 60: Attacking a VUS from Multiple Angles
Neurodevelopmental disorders (NDDs) involve a wide range of symptoms and severity. Individuals may present with multiple indications including epilepsy, autism, intellectual disability, developmental delay, dysmorphic features, and other congenital anomalies. The broad and nonspecific nature of NDDs can lead to significant diagnostic challenges.…
- By Deepti Babu, MS, CGC
- Posted June 7, 2017
Improve Patient Care by Reducing Ambiguity in Gene-Disease Relationships
New discoveries are rapidly expanding our understanding of the human genome, and diagnostic laboratories use different approaches to interpret this knowledge. A challenge for laboratories is translating vast amounts of published evidence to determine the clinical validity of gene-disease relationships, which need to be integrated into a patient’s…
- By Jackie Connor
- Posted March 30, 2017
Dr. Rachid Karam Discusses Variant Classification at 2017 ACMG Annual Meeting
Actionable medical results are often a key component in deciding a patient’s medical management and specialized treatment options. However, some genetic test results can have unclear implications or Variants of Unknown Significance (VUS), which can often affect a clinician’s medical management plans for their patients. During the 2017 ACMG…
- By Jackie Connor
- Posted March 2, 2017
RNA Labs—How they Impact the Medical World
Ribonucleic Acid, otherwise known as RNA, is the messenger that carries instructions for controlling the synthesis of proteins from Deoxyribonucleic Acid (DNA). The central dogma of molecular biology states that “DNA makes RNA makes protein." However, for the proteins, which are the final product, to work properly, the RNA needs to be “edited,"…