Assessment of Awareness and Opinion of Direct-to-Consumer Genome Testing Among Physicians and Medical Students

Since the start of direct-to-consumer personal genome testing, many studies have examined the consumers' perspective on these products but almost none have focused on the medical provider's view of genome testing. This study assessed the current level of awareness and opinion of direct-to-consumer genome testing among physicians in Washington D.C. and Montgomery County, Maryland through a questionnaire. Results indicated that a majority of the 114 physicians and medical students that participated had little to no awareness of direct-to-consumer genome testing and neutral opinions regarding testing. Despite this, most participants felt genome testing could be useful for disease prevention and risk reduction. A small number of participants had strongly negative opinions about genome testing and some comments reflected common misconceptions about what genome testing can and cannot do. This information could prove useful to developing or refining educational materials on genome testing for medical professionals.