Genetics Play an Important Role in Assessing Brain Cancer Risk and Treatment (interview)

Interview

 Assessing a patient’s risk for brain tumors, and other tumor types, based on genetic testing can be a complex and complicated process—one that genetic counselors can help with, says Krista Qualmann, MS, CGC....Qualmann discussed the syndromes she is identifying in patients in her clinic, as well as how they could impact treatment, in an interview with Targeted Oncology.

  The genetic testing that I’m talking to patients about is genetic testing either on a blood or saliva sample to look for a gene mutation that they were born with. Very common syndromes could include things like Li-Fraumeni syndrome, von Hippel-Lindau disease, Lynch syndrome, and a couple more.

 For Li-Fraumeni syndrome, almost every type of cancer that you can think of has been seen in at least a couple of patients. I think they have narrowed it down to 4 or 5 of the most common, but then they’re also at a very high risk for other cancers. For women specifically with Li-Fraumeni syndrome, they have a very high lifetime risk of any cancer because of their really high risk for breast cancer, which isn’t necessarily seen in men.