Your Genes Hold the Untold Story of Your Health
Your lifestyle and family history are important factors in your chance of developing common health conditions, such as heart disease, cancer and diabetes. Now, through a simple and affordable saliva collection kit, you can also find out whether you carry genetic markers that may indicate your propensity to develop these conditions.
It's now possible to know the story of your genes, so you can make proactive choices in consultation with your physician to improve your health and reduce your risk of developing common health conditions.
What Your Genes Can Tell You and Your Doctor
Recent advances in medical research have identified genetic markers associated with many health conditions. Pathway screens for genetic markers in your DNA to identify your level of risk for developing common health conditions. Having these genetic markers does not mean you will get the disease, but does indicate if you may have an increased or decreased risk of developing the condition. Based on your genotype and the scientific criteria that our respected teams of scientists and physicians have analyzed, we place you in one of four different risk levels for each condition.
We also report the exact genetic markers that have been screened, report your individual genotype, and provide you with information about these genes and about each condition, with health information provided by Harvard Health Publications. You will receive recommendations on healthy choices you can make for prevention and early detection. Most importantly, we have a staff of highly experienced genetic counselors available to speak with you.
“Our report does not tell you whether you will or will not get a disease. We will reveal your genetic factors relevant to many common conditions so that you and your doctor can use this information to make better health choices”
David Becker, Ph.D. Chief Science Officer, Pathway GenomicsHow to Use Information About Your Genetics
If you choose to share this information with your physician, it can facilitate more informed personalized medical discussions between you, your doctor and your family. Knowing your risk allows you to become educated about the disease. You can learn to identify early warning signs or symptoms, prevent the condition with lifestyle choices, and learn about screening and treatment options.
Since many health conditions can have genetic, lifestyle, and environmental causes, it’s still very important to live a healthy and balanced lifestyle and go for regular checkups and screenings, even if you do not have any known genetic risks for a health condition.
List of Conditions Tested
Find out your genetic predisposition to common health conditions, so you and your physician can make informed choices about your health.
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Diabetes, Type 2
- Type 2 diabetes is the most common form of diabetes and usually develops in people over the age of 45, although more cases are now appearing in children who are overweight. In type 2 diabetes, cells in the body are unable to respond to the hormone insulin, resulting in high levels of glucose in the blood. Glucose is the main fuel or energy source for the body; insulin is important because it controls the storage and distribution of glucose in the body. Left untreated, diabetics can develop serious complications including damage to the heart, blood vessels, kidney, eye and foot.
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Melanoma
- Melanoma is a cancer of the pigment cells (melanocytes) in your skin. What makes melanoma such a deadly form of skin cancer is the ability of melanoma cells to spread the cancer (metastasize) to other parts of your body. Exposure to ultraviolet radiation from sunlight or tanning lamps is thought to increase the risk of skin cancers, including melanoma. Dark-skinned people are less likely to get melanoma than fair-skinned people, probably because of the protective effect of pigmentation.
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Myocardial Infarction
- Myocardial infarction is a medical term for heart attack. A heart attack occurs when the blood supply to the heart is blocked by a blood clot in one of the coronary arteries. The blood clot usually forms from a fatty material called plaque which has come loose from the wall of the artery. Plaque accumulates in the wall of arteries in a condition called atherosclerosis (also known as coronary artery disease or hardening of the arteries). Factors that increase the risk of atherosclerosis also increase the risk of heart attack. Age and a family history of early coronary artery disease increase the risk of heart attack, but are out of your control. On the other hand, smoking, high blood pressure, high blood cholesterol, obesity, physical inactivity and diabetes are heart attack risk factors that you can reduce with lifestyle changes or medication.
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Prostate Cancer
- The prostate gland, an important part of the male reproductive system, is the site of a slow-growing cancer that is common in men over the age of 65. Although some types of prostate cancer are aggressive and may metastasize, other types of prostate cancer grow so slowly that the affected individuals usually die from other causes. The main risk factors for prostate cancer are age over 65, African American ancestry, family history and obesity.
See our full list of Conditions tested
How this information can empower you and your doctor
Both genetic and environmental factors can influence the development of type 2 diabetes. However, you can delay or prevent the onset of type 2 diabetes by maintaining an optimum body weight with a healthy diet and adequate exercise. We screen for numerous genetic variants that are associated with a high risk of type 2 diabetes. By knowing your genetic risk, you can work with your doctor to evaluate your blood sugar levels and to make appropriate changes to your diet and physical activity.
Have a question? Want to know more? Contact UsUsing Your Kit
It's simple and easy to use
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Step 1. Ask your Doctor
Your physician will then order your Personal Genetic Report. You will receive a Saliva Collection Kit, which contains everything you need to get started.
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Step 2. Activate your kit
Go to activate and follow the easy step-by-step instructions to create your password-protected, secure online account.
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Step 3. Fill saliva tube
Provide 2ml of saliva in the tube, as marked on the side. To ensure there is sufficient DNA, rub your cheeks and swish the saliva around in your mouth.
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Step 4. Send it back
Place the saliva collection tube containing the sample into the prepaid envelope provided and return it to our secure, onsite federally CLIA certified laboratory.
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Step 5. Get your results
When your results are ready, you will be contacted by your physician. They will provide you with an easy-to-understand, comprehensive report of your DNA analysis.
Strong Science, Security & Service
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Strong Science
Pathway Genomics operates a Federally CLIA certified and California state licensed 11,000 square-foot facility. Our world-renowned science team and top geneticists stay at the forefront of research findings and operate the latest genetic testing platforms.
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Secure DNA Lockbox™
Once we receive your saliva sample, the confidentiality of your DNA is protected in our proprietary DNA Lockbox™.
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Expert Genetic Counselors
Customers and their physicians have access to our onsite staff of genetic counselors, all Board eligible or certified by the American Board of Genetic Counseling, to discuss details of the genetic report. Our customer service representatives and genetic counselors will, of course, answer any pre-purchase questions. Our genetic counselors are also available for individual genetic report interpretation and counseling.
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Harvard Health Publications
Harvard Health Publications, a division of Harvard Medical School, publishes current, practical, and authoritative health information, drawing on the expertise of the physicians at Harvard Medical School and its affiliated hospitals. Pathway Genomics is pleased to provide our customers with the latest health information from this respected institution.
Preview of Results
An easy-to-understand report will be posted to the user's secure member account.
From there it can be downloaded, printed or shared if desired.
- Simple System to Understand We understand that DNA can be complex. We have translated your results into a simple and easy to understand report, and have genetic counselors available.
- Our database continues to grow You will receive a notification of any new available reports as they are added by our scientists to our genetic database.
