Government and private health care
Government and private health care
Government and private health care
Anyone can carry risky genes. However, it is more likely if a risky gene mutation has already been identified in your family or if certain criteria apply. The criteria may vary somewhat, depending on your region, but it is important that you have a good understanding of your family and/or personal cancer history when seeking government-insured testing.
Government-insured testing usually requires a referral from a primary care physician to a genetics or hereditary cancer clinic.
Government Genetic Clinics in Canada
Hereditary/High Risk Clinics in Canada
Online services
Government and private health care
Government and private health care
For those who do not qualify for government-insured genetic testing or prefer to use private clinics or testing options for quicker turnaround, affordable no-barrier options are available that anyone can use. However, these services are not created equal so it is important to do your homework to ensure you have chosen the best test for your situation. Ensure you choose an option that includes professional genetic counseling to interpret the results and a comprehensive test that includes all of the more recently discovered genes.
In the case where a risky gene mutation has already been identified in your family, the work required to search out that mutation in biological relatives is less and so is the cost of the test.
There are many good options, with some examples of a multi-gene panel service being Color Genomics and Invitae.
We changed our name
Risky genes is a genetic condition that can cause any of several types of cancer due to the presence of inherited mutations in any of many different genes. Our old name, The Hereditary Breast and Ovarian Cancer Society, was based on old science that no longer reflects the true scope of this condition.