Endocrine Cancer

Mayo Clinic Laboratories’ newly expanded Hereditary Pancreatitis Gene Panel is transforming how clinicians diagnose and manage a complex, often elusive disease. Developed through close collaboration between lab scientists, genetic counselors, and clinicians, the test uses a whole exome sequencing backbone to analyze nine carefully selected genes with strong clinical relevance. This focused approach avoids ambiguous results while empowering early diagnosis, cancer risk assessment, and family testing. Built on a whole exome backbone with reflex capabilities, the panel represents a major step forward in precision medicine — offering clarity for patients and providers, and a platform for future genomic innovation.

In this “Hot Topic,” Joshua Bornhorst, Ph.D., assistant professor of laboratory medicine and pathology at Mayo Clinic, reviews biomarker component testing for hepatocellular carcinoma, explains the GALAD score, and explores GALAD score testing at Mayo Clinic Laboratories.

This week’s Research Roundup highlights the association between inherited germline mutations in cancer predisposition genes and risk of pancreatic cancer.

This week’s Research Roundup highlights the association between inherited germline mutations in cancer predisposition genes and risk of pancreatic cancer.

According to Mayo Clinic research published in JAMA, six genes contain mutations that may be passed down in families, substantially increasing a person’s risk for pancreatic cancer.