Terri is a 62-year-old woman with metastatic lung cancer. Her somatic cancer panel report shows that her tumor carries a variant for which there is an approved drug, but the drug is indicated only for the treatment of advanced colorectal cancer. Terri’s results also show that she may be eligible for two clinical trials that are testing treatments for metastatic lung cancer that carries the same variant she carries. What should her physician’s recommendation for treatment be?
This is the kind of case that physicians are more frequently encountering as the promise of precision medicine poses new treatment puzzles. It is this kind of case that is tackled in a continuing medical education module intended to enhance physicians’ and other health professionals’ knowledge of interpreting somatic cancer panel testing results and applying advances in precision medicine for their patients’ benefit.
Widely referred to as tumor genome testing, somatic cancer panel results can identify potential treatment options for patients. However, physicians and other health professionals often struggle to understand the results of this testing. The “Interpreting Somatic Cancer Panel Testing Reports” module, developed by the AMA, Scripps Translational Science Institute and The Jackson Laboratory, is part of a broader AMA educational series on precision medicine.
“We know that genetic technology is rapidly expanding, often too quickly for physicians and other health professionals to become familiar with new technologies before they become clinically available,” AMA President David O. Barbe, MD, MHA, said in a statement. “In particular, somatic cancer panel testing is a relatively new and quickly expanding type of test in cancer care. With many physicians who treat and follow cancer patients unfamiliar with the use of these panels, and little clinical guidance yet available for their use, the new modules will help physicians better understand the factors that should be considered when incorporating cancer panel testing into patient care.”
In the newest module, physicians can learn how to identify important test characteristics, compare and contrast offerings from different laboratories, find actionable information on the test report and interpret results in the context of the individual patient.
The module, which is free, takes 20–30 minutes to complete; 0.5 AMA PRA Category 1 Credit™ is available. The course furthers AMA efforts to help physicians get the tools and knowledge they need to properly incorporate personalized medicine into practice to improve health outcomes.
