Perspectives

Genetic Counseling Support for U.S. Military Populations: An Introduction to the Military SIG

Cheyenne Caldwell, MS, CGC; Lydia Hellwig, PhD, ScM, CGC; Valerie Kruger, MS, CGC

The Military Health System (MHS), the United States Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) and civilian health care systems provide care for over 18 million active-duty military service members, veterans and their families in the United States. Genetic and genomic testing can have unique implications for members of this patient population, which genetic counselors are well-prepared to discuss. Continue reading Genetic Counseling Support for...

Reflections From a New Supervisor: Challenges and Lessons Learned

Christine Tallo, MMSc, CGC (she/her)

Last year, I was promoted to a genetic counselor supervisor position within my institution. While this transition has been mostly a positive experience so far, my time as a new leader has also presented me with challenges that I did not initially expect. Although I have gained more responsibilities and experiences after being in the same position for the past several years, one of the first apparent changes of being in leadership was an increased workload. Continue reading Reflections From a...

Journal of Genetic Counseling

Patients' Attitudes Regarding Genetic Counseling Before Germline BRCA1/2 Pathogenic Variants Testing in Taiwan: A Single-Country, Multi-Center, Patient-Reported Outcome Study

Wen-Ling Kuo, Po-Han Lin, Meng-Ting Peng, Chia-Hui Chu, Chia-Wei Cho

Germline pathogenic variants of BRCA1 or BRCA2 cause hereditary breast and ovarian cancer syndromes. The present study investigated the participants' understanding and awareness of germline BRCA1/2 pathogenic variants before genetic counseling, the expectations and obstacles for genetic testing from the perspective of participants and their families, and their attitudes towards genetic testing after counseling. Continue reading Patients' Attitudes Regarding...

What Knowledge is Required for an Informed Choice Related to Non-invasive Prenatal Screening?

Erin Griffin, Gillian Hooker, Matthew Grace, Kimberly Kaphingst, Digna Velez Edwards, Zhiguo Zhao, Jill Slamon

Non-invasive prenatal screening (NIPS) using cell-free DNA is a screening test for fetal aneuploidy offered by a variety of prenatal healthcare providers. Guidelines for genetic screening consistently recommend that providers facilitate informed choices, which have been associated with better psychological and clinical outcomes than uninformed choices. Continue reading What Knowledge is Required...