Alabama genetics company forgoes thousands in profit to help women understand their breast cancer risk

HUNTSVILLE, Ala. — Kailos Genetics, a  genetic testing company partnering with the HudsonAlpha Institute for Biotechnology, whose campus has been in Huntsville since 2008, announced this year they would forgo thousands in profits to provide discounted testing to many Alabama women for a genetic mutation that may cause hereditary forms of breast and ovarian cancer.

The test will be given at a steep discount of $99 to women over the age of 19 in Madison, Marshall, Jackson, and Limestone Counties. If you happen to be 30 years old between Oct. 29, 2015, and Oct. 28, 2016 in Madison County, you can receive the test free of charge.

Those outside the area can still be tested for $225, a discount from the full price of $299.

The “Knowledge is Power” campaign will kick off Thursday with an event at Huntsville’s Von Braun Center where the first of the free kits will be given out.

Those squeamish of blood and needles should have no worry, the DNA needed for the test is easily procured with a simple mouth swab.

According to the Kailos Genetics website, the Kailos hereditary cancer screening test can “tell you if you carry the BRCA1 and BRCA2 gene mutations that are strong risk signs for hereditary breast and ovarian cancer. It also looks for changes in 21 additional genes to provide information about risks related to breast, ovarian, colon and endometrial (uterine) cancers.”

While the company makes clear that a positive test is not a guarantee you will develop cancer, and a negative test doesn’t mean you’re safe from other forms of cancer, knowledge can help those receiving the service take certain precautions.

“Your genes never change, so the earlier you can take the test and understand your own DNA, the more impact and control you can have over your own health,” says Kailos Genetics’s website.

Genetic counselors will work with all participants who test positive to investigate their options, whether they elect to play the odds or undertake preventative treatments.

(H/T AL.com)