Genomics Directories for Somatic and Inherited Cancers

The current National Genomic Test Directory for Cancer specifies the genomic tests commissioned by the NHS in England for cancer, the technology by which they are available, and the patients who will be eligible to access testing. The Genomic Test Directory for Cancer is subdivided into Adult Solid Tumours, Neurological Tumours, Sarcomas, Haematological Cancer and Paediatric Tumours.

The majority of tests within the Genomic Test Directory for Cancer are available within the Central and South Genomic Laboratory Hub (C&S GLH). Some specialised tests will be exported to other GLH laboratories within the Genomic Medicine Service network. Tests which are not listed on the Test Directory are not currently commissioned by NHS England. The process for requesting additions and updates to the Test Directory is detailed here.

Information regarding Whole Genome Sequencing for Cancer.

At West Midlands Regional Genetics Laboratory, we are committed to delivering the highest standards of genomic testing for our patients. Recently, additional genes have been added to the National Genomic Test Directory as clinical trial targets for some solid tumour indications. 

While we recognise the importance of testing these additional genes, the solid cancer team is currently optimising new processes and analytical pathways to ensure that we can safely and accurately deliver results for these targets. To maintain high standards of quality and fast turnaround times, this will involve significant updates to our bioinformatics, analytical and reporting strategies.

As such, we are not yet in a position to deliver testing for these additional genes. However, please be assured that we are committed to making these requests possible within the next 2-3 months.

Please note, our current analytical procedure for RNA targets means that we will continue to report any clinically relevant structural variants that we detect across the full scope of the NGS panel used. We will also continue with testing and reporting of genes included in the previous version of the test directory.

We appreciate your understanding as we make these necessary preparations to expand our testing capabilities. Please check back regularly for updates on our progress.