Francisco Acevedo, Oncologist at Hospital Clínico de la Universidad Católica, shared on LinkedIn:
“Finding a germline variant is not the same as proving clinical utility.
That’s the idea behind GENÉTICA, a new critical-reading newsletter on cancer genetics that I’m launching in Spanish.
For this first issue (September–October 2026), I selected eight recent papers that raise some important questions:
Who should undergo germline testing?
Age alone is a poor filter in adults (Stadler, Mannucci), while findings from childhood leukemia challenge how we think about universal versus phenotype-guided testing (Taylan).
How much risk does a variant really confer?
Germline EGFR T790M is associated with a markedly increased risk of lung cancer (OR ~25), but absolute penetrance remains uncertain.
When is the evidence sufficient to change management?
MITF E318K is associated with melanoma risk, but the evidence linking it to renal cancer remains inconclusive.
Each paper ends with the same question:
Does this change my practice?
- Sometimes yes.
- Sometimes not yet. And understanding the difference matters.
GENÉTICA aims to bridge emerging evidence and everyday clinical decisions, with particular attention to its relevance in Latin America.
(First issue attached)
I’d love to hear your thoughts, especially where you think the evidence is (or isn’t) ready to change practice.”
Check the media below.
You can also read: Wafaa M Rashed: What can Genetics, Environment, and Ancestry Tell us About why Childhood Leukemia Develops?
