NEW YORK – The O'Neal Comprehensive Cancer Center at the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) announced a partnership on Thursday with My Gene Counsel to expand access to hereditary genetic testing for its patients.
The cancer center will begin using My Gene Counsel’s digital genetic counseling platform, which aims to improve patient wait times for genetic testing and counseling and streamline genetic counselors' ability to keep patients and doctors updated on cancer risk information, medical management guidelines, and the reclassification of genetic variants as research evolves.
The partnership will allow physicians to initiate genetic testing and provide pre-test education for patients through the My Gene Counsel platform and keep doctors and patients updated on the latest evidence and guidelines that may impact management through Living Lab Reports, a digital report and reference hub.
The platform will be available first within UAB’s Breast Health Center, then the university plans to expand access into other areas of the cancer center. Previously, UAB required all patients undergoing genetic testing to meet with a genetic counselor before and after testing. With the new platform, UAB will only refer patients who have tested positive for pathogenic genetic variants to genetic counselors, which the university hopes will reduce wait times for genetic counseling resources.