Your results will be clinician or genetic counsellor, who will discuss them with you along with the next steps. Possible findings include:
Pathogenic variant found – also known as a ‘positive’ result. This means a gene change was identified that is known to increase your cancer risk. It does not mean you will definitely develop cancer if you don’t have a personal history of cancer, but if you have cancer it may influence your medical management. The result should be shared with your relatives who may want to be tested to understand their own cancer risk.
No pathogenic variants found – also known as a ‘negative’ result. This means you do not have a harmful change in any of the genes that were tested. It does not mean you will not get cancer, as there are many other factors that contribute to cancer risk, and it does not rule out changes in genes that were not tested.
Variant of unknown significance (VUS) found – this means a gene change was identified however its impact on hereditary cancer risk is not yet understood. This finding will not change your ongoing medical care.