When people get tested for genes that might expose them to an increased risk of cancer, that analysis generally looks at DNA alone. Now, what’s being billed as the first commercial test of its kind aims to turn up more at-risk patients by also looking at DNA’s cousin: RNA, which carries out orders for making proteins.
The new +RNAinsight test, launched this week by Ambry Genetics, will screen RNA transcripts for 18 genes, including the BRCA genes known for variants that elevate risk for breast and ovarian cancer, alongside the usual DNA analysis. For now, insurers won’t pay anything additional for the RNA testing to be added the Ambry DNA tests that they already cover; the combined testing will cost $400 for the tiny fraction of Ambry’s patients who pay entirely out of pocket.
But a key question will need to be answered for Ambry’s physician-ordered test to get traction and for insurers to eventually agree to pay more for it: Can it add value beyond existing DNA tests?
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