Tampa General Hospital will utilize My Gene Counsel’s digital genetic counseling tools that update, to scale genetic testing for patients with breast, ovary, prostate and pancreas cancer.
TAMPA, Fla. (PRNewwire-PRWeb) Nov. 28, 2023 – Tampa General Hospital (TGH) today announced that, through a partnership with My Gene Counsel, the hospital will become the first clinical site in Florida to use digital tools for genetic counseling and testing of patients diagnosed with cancers of the breast, ovary, prostate or pancreas. My Gene Counsel is a digital health company specializing in genetic counseling and testing.
As part of a pilot project titled, “Scaling Point-of-Care Genetic Testing for High-Risk Patients with Digital Genetic Counseling Tools,” Tampa General is utilizing My Gene Counsel’s Living Lab Report which delivers updated genetic counseling information as new disease details emerge, guidelines evolve, and genetic variants are reclassified. The pilot is set to start in December.
“This state-of-the-art digital program will enable us to offer timely and equitable genetic counseling and testing services to all patients who qualify, under the leadership of oncology,” said Dr. Thomas J. Rutherford, medical director, TGH Cancer Institute and director of the Division of Gynecology and Oncology, USF Health Morsani College of Medicine. “It not only levels the playing field for patients fighting cancer, it also enables us to provide universal access to genetic risk assessment to a significantly higher number of people than before we had this tool at our disposal.”
Tampa General’s Cancer Genetics Program currently works with a team of specialists in the field. After a thorough review of family medical history, the academic health system can help an individual learn about cancer risk specific to them, suggest ways to help manage it, and determine whether the individual will benefit from genetic testing. With this new program in place, the academic health system can now provide universal access to genetic risk assessment for every patient diagnosed with cancers of the breast, prostate, pancreas, or ovary. In 2022, more than 1,000 patients were diagnosed with one of those cancers.
At Tampa General, a genetic counselor can typically see about 600 patents every year. Through this program, the hospital will be able to provide genetic testing services and reports for significantly more patients.
“We are thrilled to partner with Tampa General Hospital on this meaningful project, which will benefit the lives of so many,” said Ellen Matloff, co-founder and CEO of My Gene Counsel. “The Living Lab Report is an excellent complement to TGH’s Cancer Genetics Program and will make it possible to remove barriers to care, while providing real-time data on patients that positively impacts both care and outcomes.”
Genetic pre-test education can be delivered online rather than in-person with this program, reducing wait time and increasing accessibility for patients who would otherwise have difficulty accessing these medical services. Additionally, the genetic test report provided is superior, for both patients and clinicians, to current reports available.
ABOUT MY GENE COUNSEL
My Gene Counsel is a digital health company that allows partners to scale genetic counseling and testing, support clinicians and patients, and to provide safe, equitable genetic and biomarker testing across networks. Founded by certified genetic counselors with 30+ years of clinical experience, My Gene Counsel helps partners save resources, retain patients, and efficiently deliver on the promise of precision medicine. For more information, visit https://www.mygenecounsel.com.
ABOUT TAMPA GENERAL HOSPITAL
Tampa General Hospital, a 1,040-bed, not-for-profit, academic health system, is one of the largest hospitals in America and delivers world-class care as the region’s only center for Level l trauma and comprehensive burn care. Tampa General Hospital is the highest-ranked hospital in the market in U.S. News and World Report’s 2023-24 Best Hospitals, with six specialties ranking among the top 50 best hospital programs in the United States. Tampa General Hospital has been designated as a model of excellence by the 2022 Fortune/Merative 100 Top Hospitals list. The academic health system’s commitment to growing and developing its team members is recognized by two prestigious Forbes magazine rankings – in the top 100 nationally in the 2023 America’s Best Employers for Women and top 25 in Florida in the 2023 America’s Best Employers by State. Tampa General is the safety net hospital for the region, caring for everyone regardless of their ability to pay, and in fiscal year 2021, provided a net community benefit worth more than $224.5 million in the form of health care for underinsured patients, community education, and financial support to community health organizations in Tampa Bay. It is one of the nation’s busiest adult solid organ transplant centers and is the primary teaching hospital for the USF Health Morsani College of Medicine. With six medical helicopters, Tampa General Hospital transports critically injured or ill patients from 23 surrounding counties to receive the advanced care they need. Tampa General houses a nationally accredited comprehensive stroke center, and its 32-bed Neuroscience, Intensive Care Unit is the largest on the West Coast of Florida. It also is home to the Jennifer Leigh Muma 82-bed neonatal intensive care unit, and a nationally accredited rehabilitation center. Tampa General Hospital’s footprint includes 17 Tampa General Medical Group Primary Care offices, TGH Family Care Center Kennedy, TGH Outpatient Center, TGH Virtual Health, and 21 TGH Imaging outpatient radiology centers throughout Hillsborough, Pasco, Pinellas and Palm Beach counties. Tampa Bayarea residents also receive world-class care from the TGH Urgent Care powered by Fast Track network of clinics. To see a medical care professional live anytime, anywhere on a smartphone, tablet or computer, visit Virtual Health | Tampa General Hospital (tgh.org). As one of the largest hospitals in the country, Tampa General Hospital is the first in Florida to partner with GE Healthcare and open a clinical command center that provides real-time situational awareness to improve and better coordinate patient care at a lower cost. For more information, go to http://www.tgh.org.
Media Contact
mGC Marketing Dept, My Gene Counsel, 203-871-1256, info@mygenecounsel.com
Beth Hardy, APR, (727) 510-6363, ehardy@tgh.org, https://www.tgh.org/