Every day it seems there’s a new at-home DNA test on the market, and two of the biggest testing companies – Ancestry.com and 23andMe – have sold over 30 million tests combined. If you’re considering an at-home DNA test, you may have questions. Can you rely on these tests to give you accurate medical information? Are they something you can use in place of a test ordered at your doctor’s office? If so, what do the results mean?

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Like many people, you may worry about developing Alzheimer’s disease. Alzheimer’s disease is the most common cause of dementia, a decline in mental ability over time that can interfere with quality of life. A combination of genetic, environmental and lifestyle factors play a role in a person’s risk to develop Alzheimer’s disease.  There is a strong genetic link for Alzheimer’s disease, for example, in people who have features of the conditions earlier in life (before age 65), as well as later in life.

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As a genetic counselor who specializes in psychiatric illnesses and addictions, I frequently hear this question from the individuals and families I meet with: Is there a gene that's responsible for my condition?  It's also a common question in online searches; depression, alcoholism and schizophrenia are among the top 10 topics that come up in Google searches that ask: “Is there a gene for. . .”   

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Huntington's disease is an inherited brain disorder that is caused when specific cells in the brain die. Symptoms include mood and behavior disturbances , including depression, apathy, irritability, anxiety, and obsessions; cognitive decline , such as loss of memory and inability to focus, plan, recall or make decisions; and physical deterioration due to large involuntary movements, which cause loss of coordination and difficulty walking, talking, and swallowing. 

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As a genetic counselor specializing in ovarian cancer, I was heartened to learn about a recently approved chemotherapy treatment for women with a type of inherited ovarian cancer. In December, the US. Food and Drug Administration granted accelerated approval of Lynparza (also known as olaparib) for women whose ovarian cancer is caused by an inherited mutation in the BRCA1 or BRCA2 gene. Currently, this treatment is only for women whose cancer has failed to respond to three other types of chemotherapy.

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The webinar will provide an overview of Alzheimer's disease and the role genetics plays in disease risk and also how genetic testing for Alzheimer's differs from other types of genetic testing. 

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Approximately 7 million ancestry tests have been ordered by curious consumers, most of those in the past few years. That’s a lot of DNA!. While these results have the potential to empower people with information they can then use to make changes or decisions, they can also raise questions. Where do you turn for answers?

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A Genetic Counselor Guides You Through Your Testing Options 

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More than 1 in every 100 people has a genetic predisposition to a hereditary type of heart disease. The following webinar is presented by Amy Sturm, CGC LGC. During the webinar, Amy discusses the most common types of hereditary heart diseases

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