By Paul Carton
May 26, 2009

ChangeWave's Healthcare survey of 322 physicians points to a rise in doctor referrals for genetic testing going forward, along with a strong willingness of doctors to refer patients for specific tests like cancer, diabetes and heart disease.

Results show that despite the overall belief that genetic testing is important, doctors still harbor a degree of hesitation with respect to the issues surrounding the tests.  Many report being strong advocates of regulatory controls over the nascent genetic testing industry.  Importantly, only one-in-ten doctors say genetic testing has become an integral part of their practice.

Rising Referrals

Nearly a third of doctors surveyed (30%) now say they’ve recommended or referred patients for a genetic test to asses risk for a specific disease over the past 12 months – an increase of 5-pts since our previous July 2008 survey. Testing patients’ risk for cancer (34%) was the top reason cited by physicians.

The ChangeWave survey also shows increasing demand for genetic testing. Better than one-in-five doctors (21%) report they’re More Likely to recommend or refer patients for genetic testing over the next 12 months, while only 3% say they’re Less Likely



Genetic Testing for Specific Diseases

The vast majority of doctors who have received inquiries about genetic testing say it’s because of patient concern over Risk for Developing a Specific Disease (85%). Another 13% say it’s because of General Health Concerns.

The survey also focused on several specific medical conditions, including Alzheimer’s, asthma, cancer, diabetes, heart disease, multiple sclerosis, and Parkinson’s disease.

The following chart shows the percentage of doctors who report their patients are Very or Somewhat Concerned with developing each condition – along with the change from our previous survey.



Cancer (92%) is still the disease patients are most concerned with, but heart disease (90%) and diabetes (85%) show the biggest increase since the previous survey – up 7-pts and 6-pts, respectively.

We note that a huge percentage of doctors say they're willing to refer patients for specific tests like cancer (82%; down 3-pts), diabetes (73%; down 5-pts) and heart disease (72%; down 8-pts), although these numbers are down slightly from previously.

Opinions on Genetic Testing

ChangeWave also asked doctors a series of true/false questions about genetic testing to gauge their opinions on a range of important issues.



Better than half of doctor respondents (53%) agree that information gained from genetic testing would help the overall wellness of patients at their practice.

Yet despite their belief that genetic testing is important and can help their patients, doctors still show significant hesitation.  They also are strong advocates of regulatory controls over an industry still in its infancy.

The survey found that four-in-five doctors (80%) favor regulatory approval before a genetic test becomes available to consumers.  Nearly three-in-five (58%) say patients should be required to have a doctor's permission before getting expensive genetic testing.

Just one-in-four (24%) believe the genetic tests available today are highly accurate and predictive, and only 22% say genetic testing companies should be allowed to market their services directly to consumers. Importantly, only one-in-ten doctors (11%) say genetic testing has become an integral part of their practice.

Genetic Testing Companies

ChangeWave also asked doctors about several companies that conduct genetic-based tests for individuals.

Genzyme (GENZ) ranks as the one they’re most familiar with (15% Very Familiar; 29% Somewhat Familiar). Genzyme offers a variety of services – including reproductive/ genetics testing and oncology/ pathology screening – for everything from rare conditions like Gaucher’s disease to breast and colorectal cancer.

Myriad Genetics (MYGN) ranked second in the survey, with 8% of doctors saying they were Very Familiar; and 29% Somewhat Familiar with the company’s services. Myriad offers testing for breast cancer, as well as ovarian, skin, and colon cancer.

The bottom line here is that while doctors are expanding their use of genetic testing, they aren't yet ready to proclaim that the tests are the key to unlocking disease diagnosis.