testy genetyczne

profilaktyka choroby nowotworowej

nowotwory dziedziczne

percepcja ryzyka

komunikacja lekarz-pacjent

Genetic tests, specifying predisposals for cancerous disease, are increasingly more frequently applied as a prognostic factor of development of a cancerous disease. However, the result of the test specifies only the size of risk of contracting selected carcinomas, and does not provide an evidence whether the cancer will develop or not. The objective of the study was the recognition of the preferences of patients who reported to the Genetic Outpatient Department for tests determining genetic predisposal to cancerous disease, concerning the form of telling them the test result. The study group were 106 patients who reported to the Genetic Outpatient Department for tests determining genetically conditioned predisposal to cancerous disease. The research tool was a questionnaire form containing 42 questions. Nearly a half of the patients examined indicated both verbal and numerical form as the desired way of presenting the result of a genetic test. With respect to the verbal form of telling, in the test result slightly more than a half of the respondents indicated two forms, both descriptive and by comparison. When facing the possibility to choose the numerical form of the result, the majority of respondents selected description by means of a percentage value. The studies do not indicate a single desired form of presenting the size of contracting a cancerous disease. All methods of the presentation of the risk have their limitations, and to-date there is no universal form enabling the proper perception of the risk by a patient.