Genetic Testing FAQs

Testing for a hereditary cancer risk helps you and your healthcare professional understand your risk so you can make the best choices for preventive care. Knowing your family history is an important first step, but testing can give you a more accurate picture of your risk.

Testing for a hereditary cancer helps you and your healthcare professional understand your risk for developing a second primary cancer. This information can allow you to make the best choices for preventive care.

Anyone interested in getting tested with MyRisk can get tested. However, only people who have cancer in their family or a personal history of the disease need to be tested. If you have had cancer and/or cancer runs in your family, let your healthcare professional know. There are two convenient options for testing, and costs are often covered by insurance.

Ask your healthcare professional if testing is right for you. If so, your healthcare professional will draw a small amount of your blood or take a saliva sample and send it to Myriad Genetic Laboratories for analysis.

Your healthcare professional will let you know your test results as soon as they are available, which may be as soon as two weeks from the date your test is performed.

No. Genetic testing does not tell you if you currently have cancer. Your test results will tell you about your inherited risk of developing cancer in the future.

No. A positive test result simply tells you that you have an increased risk of cancer.

Most insurance carriers cover genetic testing services for hereditary cancer. Although each case is unique, the average patient pays nothing out of pocket. Myriad assists in obtaining the best possible reimbursement for each of the genetic tests we offer with the goal of making sure you receive the appropriate coverage from your insurance plan.

If you receive a bill from Myriad, we are extremely flexible. We routinely offer an interest-free 25 month payment plan when your co-insurance, deductible or uncovered services will cost $375 or more. (That’s roughly $15 per month, with zero interest.) Our friendly staff will happily find a way to make the payments work for you. If you have concerns about your bill, you can contact us at the 800 number that appears on your bill and we guarantee that we will work with you to find an option that’s right for you.

You can pay for the testing service yourself. If needed, we can set up an installment payment plan that is practical for you. We can even offer testing at no charge to uninsured patients in the U.S. who meet specific financial and medical criteria. Due to regulatory limitations, patients who are recipients of government-funded programs like Medicaid and Medicare are not eligible to apply for this assistance. Learn more about our Financial Assistance Program.