Genetic counselling

What is genetic counselling?

Genetic counselling serves to identify a hereditary risk of disease and, if possible, to take preventive measures. It can be useful if cancer occurs frequently in a family or already at a younger age. Genetic counselling primarily serves to record and evaluate the facts from the family and personal medical history. An example is the accumulation of breast and ovarian cancer in a family. The predisposition to these diseases is caused by a defect in the genetic material (mutation) and can be passed on to the children. Siblings and parents can also have an increased risk of developing tumours. Depending on the genetic defect, one can also discover increased risks for further tumours in the tested person him/herself.

It is advisable to be accompanied for counselling by interested or affected relatives.

When and how is genetic testing done?

Depending on the level of risk of having a genetic defect and the wishes of the person being counseled, an application is made to the health insurance company for approval to cover the costs of genetic testing. The test itself is carried out by taking a blood sample. It can take several weeks for the health insurance company to process the application for approval of the costs and for the test itself. The results and possible consequences are discussed with the person concerned during the consultation.

The counselling sessions are conducted by a counselling team member of Genetica / Analytica AG, Medical Genetic Counselling Centre, in the Prolindo rooms in the Lindenhofspital on the ground floor of the high-rise building.

For a consultation, you can register your patients at the address below and make an appointment with Prolindo:

Genetica / Analytica AG
Medical Genetic Counselling Centre
Falkenstrasse 14
8008 Zürich
Responsible persons:
Dr. med. Benno Röthlisberger and Dipl. med. Luzia Suda
Telephone: +41 44 250 50 30
Website: https://www.genetica.ch/
Mail: beratung@genetica.ch