Life Sciences Commons^™

Which "Me" Am I Going To Be Today? Exploring Genetic Counselors' Attitudes On Expressing Their "Authentic Self" In The Workplace, Brynna Nguyenton

KGI Theses and Dissertations

While professional organizations expect their employees to adhere to a cohesive image based on the social contract of professionalism, the modern workplace is growing increasingly diverse and freedom of self-expression is challenged by these traditionally defined norms. This study seeks to define these societal expectations and their implications in the context of a rapidly changing professional landscape. Individuals portray their true identities, or “authentic selves,” through their internal beliefs and external appearance, so naturally, these expressions may contradict the expectations for their professional appearance. Previous research has investigated professionalism, authentic selfhood, and the genetic counseling profession on separate levels, but …

The Psychosocial Effects Of Unexpected Findings On Direct To Consumer Genetic Testing, Emily Wiseman

KGI Theses and Dissertations

Direct to Consumer (DTC) genetic testing has grown in popularity since its inception in 2010. Consumers can now order DTC tests giving them more information on their ancestry, health and ethnicity than ever before. With more information and more consumers taking the tests, this has allowed for the opportunity of unexpected findings to be generated from the tests. Previous studies have shown that consumers can learn about a health risk they were previously unaware of, and this can impact the health management and surveillance practices of consumers receiving them. Additionally, studies have shown that ethnicity results can impact consumers’ previously …

Risk Reducing Mastectomies Among Women With Mutations In Moderate Penetrance Breast Cancer Susceptibility Genes, Jacob Comeaux

KGI Theses and Dissertations

Women who harbor mutations in breast cancer susceptibility genes are at an increased lifetime risk of developing breast cancer and are faced with decisions about managing their risks, including the decision of whether to undergo a risk reducing mastectomy (RRM). While decision making for risk management has been studied extensively for BRCA1 and BRCA2 carriers, there is much less information surrounding risk management for women with mutations in moderate penetrance genes. This is a retrospective study of 280 women undergoing genetic counseling at a Los Angeles-based academic hospital between 2009 and 2019. The study used medical records to examine rates …

Cancer Genetic Counselors’ Perceptions Of Nutritional Recommendations, Breann Reinsch

KGI Theses and Dissertations

Objective: The purpose of this research study is to understand the perspectives of genetic counselors who work with patients in the cancer setting and explore if nutrition is a consideration when counseling patients.

Background: Evidence on the influence of nutrition on cancer risk is increasing with retrospective cohort studies. The American Cancer Society states that smoking, body mass index (BMI), poor nutrition, and excess alcohol consumption are directly linked to cancer occurrences, therefore some cancers may be preventable through lifestyle changes (American Cancer Society, 2016). In cancer genetic counseling sessions, patients are often inquiring about nutritional recommendations. A majority of …

Identifying The Gap: Cancer Genetic Counseling And Testing For Underinsured Patients, Bailey Sanderson

KGI Theses and Dissertations

Background: Health care costs have increased faster than Consumer Price Index leading to patients weighing their options of medical treatment and services. One such service, genetic counseling, has grown 20% annually, in part due to the increased demand of genetic testing. Oncology care is one need for testing because 5-15% of all cancer diagnoses in the United States are inherited. Due to the fact that the Affordable Care Act does not cover all genetic counseling testing needs, and ethnic minorities are less likely to seek testing due to insurance coverage and costs, an increased effort is needed to reach …

Machine Learning Methods For The Analysis Of Metagenomes, Vito Adrian Cantu Alessio Robles

CGU Theses & Dissertations

As of October 2020, there are 18.6 × 1015 DNA base pairs publicly available in the Sequence Read Archive and this number is growing at an exponential rate. As DNA sequencing prices continue to drop, many research groups around the world have incorporated high throughput sequencing in their research, giving us access to sequences from many distinct ecosystems. This has revolutionized the field of metagenomics, which aims to fully characterize all organisms and their interactions in a particular system. Nevertheless, the plethora of available data has made its analysis difficult as traditional techniques such as genome assembly or sequence alignment …