Medical News: SGO: Mutation Link to Ovarian Cancer Disputed - in Meeting Coverage, SGO from MedPage (KRAS mutation)

Genomic Health Says Gene Test Alters Breast Cancer Therapy - Businessweek (21 gene test)

Ovarian cancer patient ‘failed by consultant’ (The Bolton News) - case of misconduct

Blogger's note: odd that the story didn't mention how the patient is doing ??

"....The panel heard that at a later consultation, the progress of the condition was again not identified and acted on, with poor notes made.
A specialist was not consulted and clinical standards of care were not met...."

abstract: Informed consent to microsatellite instability and immunohistochemistry screening for Lynch syndrome (ethics/informed consent)

From the 1Department of Bioethics, Cleveland Clinic; 2Genomic Medicine Institute Lerner College of Medicine, Cleveland Clinic; and 3Center for Genomic Research Ethics & Law, Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, Ohio.

Abstract

OBJECTIVE: Routine microsatellite instability (MSI) and immunohistochemistry (IHC) screening of colorectal cancers can assist in identifying a significant proportion of cancers attributable to Lynch syndrome. This article considers whether it is necessary to obtain patient informed consent for microsatellite instability and immunohistochemistry screening.

RESULTS: Although microsatellite instability screening examines genetic features of a tumor, it lacks several important characteristics that typically mandate formal informed consent to genetic testing. Microsatellite instability screening describes discrete tissue samples and does not provide information about the rest of the patient's body or germline. In contrast, immunohistochemistry screening is a proteomic test that may reveal information about the patient's germline. As such, immunohistochemistry screening can be viewed as similar to other forms of genetic testing, in which explicit patient consent is regarded as an ethical prerequisite.

CONCLUSION: There is no ethical requirement to obtain explicit informed consent for microsatellite instability screening of colorectal tumor samples for Lynch syndrome. There is support for obtaining patient consent to immunohistochemistry testing, given its similarities with other genetic analyses for which informed consent is typically deemed necessary. Regardless of which screening test is used, it is important to prepare patients and their families for the possibility of a positive screening test.

Mar 15th, 2011 - free full access - A National Registry for Healthy Volunteers in Phase 1 Clinical Trials - — JAMA

Nevada news: Nevada Cancer Institute Expands with New Oncologists (gynecologic oncologist)