The National Society of Genetic Counselors (NSGC) has introduced a new webinar series, “Genetic Counselors and You” hosted by genetic counselors from a variety of fields. Webinars are live and the recording can be accessed later if you miss the streaming. Registration is free and open to the public.
The most recent webinar, “Rare Disease: What Role Do Genetics Play?”, was hosted by Kelly East, MS, CGC. You can watch the recording here.
Kelly East is a certified genetic counselor and clinical applications lead at the HudsonAlpha Institute for Biotechnology in Huntsville, Alabama. She oversees and participates in the provision of genetic and genomic counseling for research projects and clinical services at HudsonAlpha and leads the development of educational experiences and resources for healthcare providers, trainees, and patients.
East begins this webinar with an overview of the requirements for a disease to be considered ‘rare’ and the (surprising) number of people who have rare diseases: 30 million Americans!
The journey from undiagnosed to a rare disease diagnosis is often a long road. East explains the general steps taken by families who go through this process including misdiagnoses and genetic testing. With today’s technology, there are various types of genetic tests such as karyotypes, microarray, and DNA sequencing tests. East shares the level of coverage versus resolution for each test and how we classify genetic changes. Not all diseases require a genetic test for a diagnosis to be made; some diseases can be diagnosed based on symptoms alone. However, East highlights medical and personal values of a genetic diagnosis.
East makes a very important point: patients should reach out to their genetic counselors to revisit genetic results. A genetic variant may have been reclassified since the initial results were reported. So stay in touch with your genetic counselor!
Here are a few of the resources East mentions during her presentation:
National Organization of Rare Disorders (NORD)
ClincialTrials.gov
FindAGeneticCounselors.com
GARD (Genetic and Rare Diseases Information Center)
Global Genes
Register for the next “Genetic Counselors and You” webinars is “Mental Illness and Genetics: Family History, and Protecting Your Mental Health” on Tuesday, October 24 at 8 pm ET. You can watch recordings of previous webinars on the web page as well.
Follow @MyGeneCounsel and @GeneticCouns on Twitter to stay updated on the webinar series and other genetic counseling related information.
Genetic Counselors and You Webinar Series: Rare Diseases
