Genetic Counseling without Clinical Guidelines: Perspectives from the Pediatric Oncology Experience with Kami Wolfe Schneider, MS, CGC

• Across genetic counseling specialties, genetic counselors face a rapidly evolving field in which oftentimes there is little to no information known about a particular genetic condition or gene. Genetic counselors strive to provide patients and families with as much consistent information as possible, but this can vary widely among differing clinics, genetic counselors, or geographic areas, and some may feel uneasy about the best way to approach these cases. As the field of genetic counseling moves forward and service delivery models change, these are the areas that genetic counselors will likely be needed more often to provide their expertise. This webinar aims to help attendees consider options for how to handle clinical discussions regarding patients with conditions for which there is a lack of published testing or management guidelines. A brief background will be provided and examples of how these situations may be approached in a clinical setting will be discussed, utilizing experience and case examples from pediatric oncology genetic counseling.

  

  Only the live session qualifies for CEUs but when possible, we host the recordings on our website and NSGC recommends participants to use their personal email instead of work email addresses to ensure they receive their CEU certificates.

  

  Ambry Genetics is approved as a provider for continuing education program by NSGC and ASCLS P.A.C.E ® Program.

Kami Wolfe Schneider, MS, CGC | Presenter

   

Kami Wolfe Schneider, MS, CGC is a Senior Instructor working full time for Children’s Hospital Colorado in the Hematology, Oncology, and Bone Marrow Transplant Division since June 2013 at the University of Colorado. A 2005 graduate of the University of Cincinnati’s genetic counseling program and ABGC board certified since 2007, she worked as a cancer and prenatal genetic counselor in Memphis, TN for more than 4 years, at which time she saw some patients referred from St. Jude Children's Research Hospital. She then joined Children's Hospital Colorado's Clinical Genetics and Metabolism department in December 2009. She initiated and developed the hospital's first pediatric cancer genetic counseling clinic which began in March 2011, and she has since expanded the genetic counseling services in the Division of Hem/Onc/BMT to include 2 full time genetic counselors covering specialty clinics including Solid and liquid tumor, Neuro-Oncology, Ortho-Oncology, Survivorship, Cancer Predisposition, Polyposis, Bone Marrow Failure, General Hematology, and Immunohematology. Kami has co-authored multiple publications on pediatric cancer genetic counseling, and she was the founding chair of the Pediatric Subcommittee of the NSGC’s Cancer Special Interest Group in 2014. In 2016, Kami was honored to be invited to participate in the American Association of Cancer Research’s Cancer Predisposition in Children’s International Workshop with 6 other genetic counselors and almost 60 other international experts in pediatric cancer predisposition. The workshop resulted in publication of 20 articles in Clinical Cancer Research in 2017 outlining expert recommendations for surveillance for syndromes for which previously published recommendations were scarce.

Tami Johnston, MS, LCGC | Moderator

   

Tami Johnston graduated from Tulane University with a B.S. in Cell and Molecular Biology and received her M.S. in Genetic Counseling with Distinction from California State University, Northridge. During her graduate training, Tami's clinical rotation sites included Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Children’s Hospital Los Angeles, and the University of California, Los Angeles Familial Cancer Registry & Genetic Evaluation Program. She then embarked on her career at Alfigen, The Genetics Institute, where she worked in both clinical and laboratory settings. She spent several years as a Laboratory Genetic Coordinator at Genzyme Genetics prior to joining Ambry Genetics in 2011. At Ambry, she began in General Genetics Reporting before transitioning to Cardiology Reporting and currently manages the Cardiology Reporting Genetic Counseling team. She is passionate about cardiovascular genetics and promoting organ donation.