Table 2.
Benefits and drawbacks of molecular tumour profiling (n = 569) *
| Benefits | Frequency | Drawbacks | Frequency |
|---|---|---|---|
| Access to personalised therapy | 328 (42%) | No drawbacks | 176 (38%) |
| Research would help others, contribute to scientific advance | 250 (32%) | Coping with negative results and possibly other negative information | 94 (20%) |
| Identify cancer risk for family members | 141 (18%) | Discrimination/privacy/insurance fears | 45 (10%) |
| Provides hope and possible cure | 34 (4%) | Sceptical of science; possible inconclusive or false results | 36 (8%) |
| Gives me certainty, control | 10 (1%) | Responsibility or guilt for genes; fear of bearing bad news to family | 33 (7%) |
| Exhausting all options, ticked all boxes | 10 (1%) | Burden of study – travel, surveys, waiting for results | 29 (6%) |
| Testing is easy and non-invasive | 2 (0%) | Possibility inaccessibility of drug trials if an actionable result was found, or receiving a placebo drug | 28 (6%) |
| Other | 18 (4%) |
● May choose more than one