Inherited Cancer Genetic Testing for Healthcare Professionals
Help your patients understand inherited cancer risk
You may already offer excellent skin checks, colonoscopies, breast screening or other preventive care. But do your patients also have a way to find out whether they carry an inherited cancer-risk gene?
At Coyne Medical, we support genetic testing referrals from dermatologists, surgeons, gastroenterologists and other healthcare professionals who want to help their patients understand inherited cancer risk.
NHS eligibility is not the whole picture
NHS genetic testing provides essential care, but eligibility rules are designed for publicly funded pathways. They are not a complete measure of whether an individual might find testing useful. Family history can also miss inherited risk when families are small, diagnoses are unknown or relatives carrying a gene change never develop cancer. Not everyone needs broad testing: a pre-test discussion helps patients understand whether it is right for them.
How we support you and your patients
- Pre-test physician consultation to review medical and family history, consent and the potential benefits and limitations of testing.
- Comprehensive 36-gene inherited cancer panel, with at-home sample collection available.
- Scheduled physician results consultation for every patient, including those with negative results.
- Discussion of evidence-based screening and risk reduction, with NHS or private specialist referrals where appropriate.
- Results and recommendations shared with the referring clinician with the patient’s consent.
Laboratory testing and quality
We work with Nonacus Clinical Services, a specialist UK genetic testing laboratory that also provides inherited cancer testing for NHS services.
Nonacus is UKAS-accredited to ISO 15189:2022 for hereditary cancer genetic testing, with results reviewed and reported by HCPC-registered clinical scientists.
Our comprehensive 36-gene inherited cancer panel includes genes associated with breast, ovarian, bowel, pancreatic and prostate cancers, as well as melanoma.
For patients who would benefit from broader testing, we also offer an advanced 54-gene inherited cancer panel through CeGaT, a specialist laboratory in Germany, alongside a separate 21-gene pharmacogenomic panel.
We can help referring clinicians decide which testing option is most appropriate for their patients, based on their personal and family history and the questions they are hoping to answer.
Combined with our physician-led consultations, results interpretation and support with screening, prevention and specialist referrals, this allows us to offer more than simply a genetic test report.
Who might you refer?
- Patients concerned about inherited risk who do not meet NHS or insurer testing criteria.
- Patients asking about inherited risk during skin, breast, bowel or other cancer screening appointments.
- People with incomplete or unknown family history who want to discuss whether testing could be useful.
- Patients who would like private access to a doctor-led genetic testing and prevention pathway.
Where a family has a known pathogenic variant, a highly suggestive syndrome or complex results, targeted testing or specialist clinical genetics input may be more suitable than a broad panel.
We work alongside you, not instead of you
You remain the patient’s treating specialist. With consent, we can share the genetic report, our interpretation and recommended next steps, and help coordinate onward assessment or prevention. We welcome discussions about how to integrate this service into your existing patient pathway.
Education for healthcare professionals
Genetic testing is increasingly relevant in everyday preventive care, but many clinicians have had limited practical training. We are developing education on identifying inherited risk, understanding negative results and uncertain variants, and translating results into useful prevention.
Discuss a referral
To refer a patient or discuss a clinician partnership, contact our director and lead on genetic screening, Dr Lucy Hooper here.
DR LUCY HOOPER
MB BS BSc MRCGP MA DRCOG DCH
Lucy is a GP and co-founder of Coyne Medical. She graduated with honours from Imperial College London, trained at St Mary’s Hospital, and holds a Master’s in Medical Ethics and Law. Her clinical interests span women’s health, preventive medicine, and genomics, with a particular focus on using advanced biomarkers to build a more complete picture of long-term health.
British Society for Genetic Medicine · European Atherosclerosis Society ·
Independent Doctors Federation
As seen in BBC, The Guardian, Women’s Health, The Times and Tatler
For educational purposes. This article is written by a practising GP and is intended to inform, not replace a consultation with your own doctor. It does not constitute medical advice. A note on clinical guidelines: Coyne Medical is an independent private clinic. Our approach is guided by the best available evidence, tailored to each individual. This may go beyond standard NHS or NICE guidance, which is designed for population-level care and weighted by resource constraints.
Looking for genetic testing for yourself?
If you’re interested in understanding your own inherited cancer risk, you don’t need a referral from a healthcare professional.
At Coyne Medical, we offer doctor-led inherited cancer genetic testing, including consultations before and after your test.
Clinical sources and publication notes
Nonacus hereditary cancer services: https://nonacus.com/clinical-services/hereditary-cancer/
NHS Genomic Test Directory: https://www.england.nhs.uk/publication/national-genomic-test-directories/
Prepared for clinical review by Dr Lucy Hooper, Medical Director, Coyne Medical. 29th October 2026.