Our data suggest that group education and counseling may confer similar benefits compared with traditional individual sessions. Additional investigation of this approach in larger numbers of patients is warranted.

Purpose: This study evaluated whether phone results were equivalent to in-person result disclosure for individuals undergoing BRCA1/2 predisposition genetic testing. Methods: A total of 111 of 136 subjects undergoing education and counseling for BRCA1/2 predisposition genetic testing agreed to randomization to phone or in-person result disclosure. Content and format for both sessions were standardized. Data from the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory and the Psychological General Well-Being index were collected at baseline and then again at 1 week and 3 months after disclosure of test results. Baseline measures were administered after the following had occurred: counseling/education session had been conducted, informed consent had been obtained, and decision to be tested had been made. Satisfaction and cost assessments were administered after the result session. At 1 week, participants were asked their preferred method of result disclosure. Results: There were no differences in anxiety and general well-being measures between 50 phone and 52 in-person results disclosure. Both groups reported similar rates of satisfaction with services. Among those with a preference, 77% preferred the notification method assigned. There was a statistically significant preference for phone results among the 23% who did not prefer the method assigned. Greater costs were associated with in-person result disclosure. Conclusions: These data suggest that phone results are a reasonable alternative to traditional in-person BRCA1/2 genetic test disclosure without any negative psychologic outcomes or compromise in knowledge. However, further study is needed in a more clinically representative population to confirm these findings. Genet Med 2007:9(8):487-495. Key Words: genetic testing, genetic counseling, BRCA1/BRCA2, result disclosure, risk communicationBreast cancer is one of the most common forms of cancer in American women and the second leading cause of cancer mortality. More than 214,000 new breast cancer cases will be diagnosed in 2006, and approximately 5% to 10% of those cases will be associated with an inherited germline mutation in a dominant susceptibility allele. 1,2 As a consequence, the absolute number of breast cancer cases diagnosed annually that are associated with a genetic predisposition is considerable. The most common high penetrance breast cancer susceptibility alleles are BRCA1 and BRCA2, which account for at least half of all genetically predisposed breast cancer. [3][4][5] Family history has long been recognized as a risk factor for breast cancer, but it was not until the availability of clinical testing for mutations in BRCA1 and BRCA2 that breast cancer risk-assessment programs including genetic education, counseling, and testing became more widely available.One of the primary aims of cancer genetic education and counseling is autonomous informed decision-making with adequate psychologic support. With those goals in mind, many cancer genetic programs are multidisciplinary and see patients