Direct to Consumer Testing: A Genetic Counselor Perspective

This lecture will review the types of direct to consumer (DTC) genetic tests that are currently on the market and why DTC testing is growing. We will focus on the medical utility of these tests, when and why health care providers should order confirmatory testing, and ethical issues surrounding these tests. Finally, we will explore secondary uses of patient data by such companies.

Lecture Presenter
Christine Miller, MS, LC GC, LCGC
Christine Miller, MS, LCGC
Adjunct Faculty, University of Utah
Genetic Counselor, ARUP Laboratories

Objectives

After this presentation, participants will be able to:

Explain the types of health information provided by Direct To Consumer (DTC) companies
Understand why DTC health tests results can be misleading or inaccurate
Describe types of DTC results that could be upsetting
Discuss when to you should refer your patient to a genetic counselor
Explore secondary uses of genetic data by DTC companies