The University of Michigan Rogel Cancer Center's Cancer Genetics Program works with you to determine if your family is at higher risk to develop cancer. And if you are, our specialized physicians and genetic counselors will develop a plan for additional screening or lifestyle changes to help reduce your cancer risk.

A variety of cancers can have a genetic component. We'll look at the full spectrum of your family and personal medical history and will follow you and your family over time, in coordination with your oncologists and primary care doctor.

Make an appointment at the Cancer Genetics Clinic by calling 734-647-8902.
Physicians who would like to refer a patient should contact M-LINE at 800-962-3555.

If you have signed up for an account on the MyUofMHealth patient portal, you can manage and request appointments with your U-M physician online. Under the “Appointments” tab on MyUofMHealth.org, you can view upcoming or past appointments, cancel appointments up to 24 hours before your scheduled time, and request a new appointment.

Visit MyUofMHealth to register for or log into the patient portal.

The more information you can bring to your appointment with a genetic counselor, the better we can determine the best course for you. There are many genes linked to cancer risk. Looking at the patterns in your personal history and your family history helps us figure out whether any genetic tests make sense and which ones will be most helpful.

Here's what you'll need:

• New Patient Paperwork for Cancer Genetics
• Relevant medical records, such as pathology reports, oncology notes, colonoscopy reports

We also ask that you quiz your family members, including siblings, children, parents, aunts, uncles and grandparents about the family medical history. Some questions that may help include:

• What relatives have had cancer?
• How old were they when diagnosed?
• Where did the cancer originate?
• Have there been any related pre-cancerous findings, such as colon polyps?
• How old are these family members now, or how old were they when they died?
• What country did your ancestors emigrate from?
   

The Cancer Genetics Clinic sees people with a personal or family history of cancers that may have genetic links. This includes conditions such as:

• Hereditary colon cancer and colon polyps
• Lynch syndrome
• Hereditary breast and ovarian cancer
• Gastric cancer
• Endocrine tumors and cancers (adrenal cancer, pheochromocytoma and paraganglioma, thyroid cancers)
• Renal cancer
• Melanoma
• Pancreatic cancer
• Sarcoma
• Li-Fraumeni syndrome
• POT1-tumor predisposition syndrome
• Von Hippel-Lindau syndrome
• Additional rare cancers

Some common reasons to consider evaluation in the Cancer Genetics Clinic include:

• Diagnosis of cancer at an earlier than average age (less than age 50 for common cancers like colon or breast cancer).
• More than one relative with the same or related cancers in the family.

• Individuals with more than one primary cancer.
• Individuals with rare or unusual cancers.

The Rogel Cancer Center participated in the Michigan Genetic Hereditary Testing (MiGHT) Study.  This is a statewide effort aimed to better identify and care for individuals and families with inherited risk of cancer.

We tested ways to:

1. Improve family history collection by healthcare providers
2. Guide people through the process of genetic testing

Michigan Medicine doctors Elena Stoffel and Jennifer Griggs are co-investigators of the MiGHT Study. They discuss Family Health History as Cancer Prevention in a recent Cancer Aware podcast.

The nurses at Cancer AnswerLine™ have answers. Call 800-865-1125 and you'll get a personal response from one of our registered nurses, who have years of experience in caring for people with cancer.