#lifelabs

Workers at B.C. LifeLabs locations could go on strike as early as Sunday morning. The B.C. General Employees' Union (BCGEU) issued a 72 hour strike notice on Thursday, after months of unsuccessful negotiations with the employer over wages and benefits. If the job action goes ahead, it would begin at 11 a.m. Sunday, LifeLabs told CBC News in an email.

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Tagging: @newsfromstolenland

Canadian residents whose personal data was compromised in a 2019 LifeLabs data breach can now apply for up to $150 in compensation from a multi-million dollar class action settlement approved in October.  The private medical diagnostics company and its subsidiaries were the target of a cyberattack on Dec. 17, 2019, that compromised patient data for around 15 million customers, mostly in British Columbia and Ontario. Hackers accessed personal information, including health numbers and test results, according to the claim. LifeLabs has denied claims of negligence brought in the class action lawsuit. The company will now pay at least $4.9 million in the negotiated settlement — and up to $9.8 million — depending on the number of claims made.

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This week I have been bothered and bewildered by names of agencies and signage. Specifically, I have been confused by the names associated with health care in Nanaimo. When I moved here a year or so ago I made sure that I signed on right away with Service BC, a government office that connects all provincial government service agencies and which automatically connected me with BC Health Services.…

Increase your Diagnostic Yield Using One of the Curated, Comprehensive, or Custom Panels from LifeLabs Genetics. Genetic testing can deliver much more than ancestry information for the curious. Clinically focused Genetic testing yields data that inform accurate diagnoses for rare diseases, support medical decisions and may change the course of a person’s life.

WHO IS THIS TEST FOR?

LifeLabs Genetics offers testing for > 200-panel options.

Fixed Panels are best suited for healthcare providers who:

Seek confirmatory diagnostic testing for patients with suspected phenotypes

Prefer to minimize the likelihood of identifying variants of uncertain significance

Would like to test only those genes most commonly associated with the suspected phenotype

The Expanded Panel is best suited for healthcare providers who:

Aim to gain deeper insights into clinically relevant genes

Have a patient with an unidentified and/or highly heterogeneous phenotype

Do not have access to whole-exome sequencing

Have a patient with an identified phenotype and are in search of an affordable clinically-based exome instead of a disease-specific panel

Progressive panels are best suited for healthcare providers who:

Have a patient with an unidentified or heterogeneous phenotype, where whole-exome sequencing has already been attempted or was not available

Have a patient with an identified phenotype, but prefer to test a large number of genes related to the specified clinical indications

Would like to expand on the fixed content panels currently offered through LifeLabs Genetics or any other provider of genetic testing

Would like the ability to reflex to a larger data set if their choice in panel comes back negative

These tests do not identify your ancestry.

TIMING

Babies, children, and adults can all benefit from genetic testing depending on the health issues or life events they are facing

Turnaround times vary by test; results may become available to your physician in 4 to 6 weeks; expedited testing for prenatal cases is also available

Timing estimates do not include time required for physician appointments, requisitions, consent signatures, sample collection, statutory holidays, or courier/shipping times (samples are analyzed in Toronto or Germany)

TEST SPECIFICS

Panel testing utilizes next-generation sequencing to achieve optimal coverage of targeted bases

Fx Panels have >99% technical sensitivity across SNVs

Ex Panel has >99.6% technical sensitivity

ProGx Panels have >99.1% technical sensitivity

Simplified Pricing Structure – Most panels are $1,500 CAD, including CNV analyses

RESULTS & REPORTS

Reports are sent to physicians only; LifeLabs Genetics cannot share results directly with patients. The ordering physician will receive an email or fax when results become available. Actual results are never shared via email.

Results documentation includes the following:

Test type, date, methodology, result, and interpretation

Positive result: Indicates a genetic variant was identified in a specific gene and that variant is pathogenic or likely pathogenic (highly likely to be causal of the disease-related condition).

Uncertain result: Sometimes, gene variants are proven but their significance is not clear. This is stated in the results and discussed with you by your physician. This category of variant is not reported for fetal samples or samples from deceased persons.

LifeLabs is pleased to announce it has partnered with Bayer Inc. to launch FastTRK, a complimentary clinical testing program for the diagnosis of neurotrophic tyrosine receptor kinase (NTRK) gene fusions in TRK fusion cancer patients in Canada.

Bayer founded the FastTRK program through partnerships with LifeLabs and the Kingston Health Sciences Centre, who are the initial labs that will be providing this centralized testing service. Bayer will cover the full cost of the test regardless of the results, treatment decision, and patient’s insurance coverage until at least the end of 2021.

“We’re pleased to be working with Bayer on this as it supports a common goal among many health care organizations in finding effective tests for patients with severe medical conditions such as cancer,” says Charles Brown, President, and CEO of LifeLabs. “Because this test is for such a rare form of cancer, it represents an exciting innovation that may lead to other treatment options for patients, where previous options have failed.”

Some cancers are caused by specific changes in genes (referred to as ‘genomic alterations’). TRK fusion cancer is caused by the fusion of an NTRK gene with another unrelated gene. TRK fusion cancer can occur in any organ or tissue type in the body, in both children and adults. FastTRK enables clinicians to test their patients’ cancer for the presence of an NTRK gene fusion across all solid tumor types. If an NTRK gene fusion is found, that patient may be eligible for a targeted treatment option.

“As new treatment options are approved to help cancer patients in Canada, in this new era of precision medicine, testing partnerships such as FastTRK are critical bridges to help clinicians identify which of their patients are candidates for specific targeted therapies,” says Dr. Shurjeel Choudhri, Senior Vice President and Head, Medical & Scientific Affairs for Bayer Inc.

Who can get tested through FastTRK?

Patients with solid tumors that are metastatic, or when surgical resection is likely to result in severe morbidity, and for whom no satisfactory treatment options are available, meet the criteria to be tested. Testing for NTRK gene fusions should be performed for patients with tumor types known to frequently harbor NTRK gene fusions.

A clinician must request the test. For more information on FastTRK or how to request a test, healthcare professionals can visit www.fasttrk.ca or email [email protected].

About LifeLabs

LifeLabs is Canada’s leading provider of laboratory diagnostic information and digital health connectivity systems, enabling patients and health care practitioners to diagnose, treat, monitor, and prevent disease. We support 20 million patient visits annually and conduct over 100 million laboratory tests through leading-edge technologies and our 5,700 talented and dedicated employees. We are a committed innovator in supporting Canadians to live healthier lives, operating Canada’s first commercial genetics lab and the country’s largest online patient portal, with more than 4.1 million Canadians receiving their results online. LifeLabs is 100% Canadian owned by OMERS Infrastructure, the infrastructure investment manager of one of Canada’s largest defined benefit pension plans. Learn more at lifelabs.com.

About Bayer