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Amanda Matchette, a licensed genetic counselor, helps York Cancer Center patients understand the cancer risks they carry within their genes, and the options available for managing those risks. |
Service to be offered in Ephrata, Adams County this fall
York Cancer Center now offers expert counseling in the burgeoning field of genetics.
Since June, licensed genetic counselor Amanda Matchette has been helping patients understand the cancer risks they carry within their genes, and the options available for managing those risks.
“We discuss how certain conditions can be passed down through families,” Matchette explained. “When test results come back, we’ll go over what they mean.”
Many patients are unfamiliar with cancer genetics, or only associate it with Angelina Jolie. In 2013, the film star opted for a preventive double mastectomy based on her family’s extensive history of breast and ovarian cancer.
“We call it the Angelina Jolie effect,” Matchette said. “It did make people more aware of the role that genetics has in cancer development.”
Jolie’s case also highlighted the importance of personal choice, Matchette said. People with the same risk factors may choose completely different treatment plans.
“It can be difficult when an individual doesn’t have cancer, but knows that they have a gene mutation that causes increased risk for cancer,” she said. “They haven’t been affected yet, but now they have to think about the future. It’s a very personal decision.”
A genetic counselor guides patients and families through the decision-making process, and helps with related issues such as anxiety.
Matchette said it was counseling’s personal interaction that drew her out of the lab and into the profession. She gets to play the roles of scientist, teacher, listener and advocate.
In the past, WellSpan oncology patients who needed genetic counseling were sometimes referred to big city health systems. Now it fits seamlessly into their care plan.
“We’ve had a lot of referrals from providers,” said Shelli Laux, administrative director of the Oncology Service Line. “We actually had a waiting list for Amanda when she started.”
Douglas Arbittier, MD, MBA, who is vice president of the Oncology Service Line, said patients aren’t the only ones to benefit from the addition of a genetics expert. It is a boon to physicians as well.
“It seems there are new genetic tests every month, and they’re all very complex,” Arbittier noted. “It gets hard to know which tests to order, and then it’s hard to interpret the results. Now a physician’s office doesn’t need to worry about acquiring all that expertise on their own.”
In October, Matchette will begin seeing patients at Ephrata Cancer Center, and in a few more months she will start at Adams Cancer Center.