Abstract
In the past 20 years, clinical laboratory science has been transformed by the use of technologies that cross the traditional boundaries between laboratory disciplines. However, during this period, issues of quality have not always been given adequate attention.
Cancer genetics takes several aspects including the detection of both germ line alterations and acquired somatic events in tumour cells. Clinical applications of our knowledge on tumorigenesis relate to two main fields, identification of major cancer predispositions in affected patients as well as asymptomatic relatives and detection of a modulation in treatment exposure and toxicity, pharmacogenetics and molecular pathology.
As molecular genetics is now an integral part of daily oncology, analyses must be highly reliable, and hence, external quality assessment (EQA) programmes are called for. EQA schemes are an important part of quality assurance in molecular genetic laboratories, and their use should become a routine part of laboratory diagnostic practice. Current evidence shows also that it is important that laboratories participate on a yearly basis. Improvements in all the areas were observed on several occasions during the progression of the EQA rounds, and this becomes mandatory for reference laboratories.
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Olschwang, S., Patton, S., Rouleau, E., Dequeker, E. (2014). Quality Assurance in Molecular Testing of Cancer. In: Yousef, G., Jothy, S. (eds) Molecular Testing in Cancer. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4899-8050-2_25
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4899-8050-2_25
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