Results From the Genetic Information and Family Testing Study: A Cluster-Randomized Trial - PubMed
6 hours ago
- #hereditary cancer
- #cluster-randomized trial
- #cascade genetic testing
- The Genetic Information and Family Testing (GIFT) study was a cluster-randomized trial evaluating an online, direct-to-family tool for cancer genetic education, communication, and home testing offer.
- The trial targeted adult relatives of cancer survivors (diagnosed 2018-2019) with a pathogenic variant, using a SEER-based patient selection and survey for eligibility.
- Interventions randomized were human navigator assistance (yes/no) and testing cost (free vs. $50), with the primary outcome being the fraction of relatives tested per family.
- Among 4,300 surveyed patients, 414 enrolled, reporting 4,946 first- and second-degree relatives; relatives invited were 948, with 303 enrolling.
- Free testing significantly increased the odds of relatives being tested compared to $50 cost (OR 2.5), but absolute increase was modest due to low baseline testing fraction (0.03).
- Human navigator assistance did not show evidence of increasing testing uptake (OR 1.3).
- The study concludes that low-cost, population-level online cascade genetic interventions without a navigator are promising, but additional strategies are needed to improve invitation and testing rates.