BALANCE WELLNESS
Genetic CODE HOW ONE BOYNTON BEACHER IS HELPING OTHERS TAKE CONTROL OF THEIR HEALTH BY VALERIE STAGGS
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WE ARE THAT STATISTIC OF PEOPLE WHO ARE MISSED BY THE GUIDELINES. WE WOULD NEVER BE FLAGGED FOR TESTING IN TODAY’S HEALTH CARE SYSTEM.”
Dahlia Attia-King (standing), founder of Panacea, with her sister, Jasmin Attia
—DAHLIA ATTIA-KING
ELINA KRIVULETS/ELINA’S DREAM PHOTOGRAPHY
Dahlia Attia-King never suspected that the company she founded to save lives would save her own. The Boynton Beach resident, who started Panacea to make genetic testing more accessible to the public, was the first to be tested along with her sister, Jasmin. They were both surprised to find that, despite having no family history of ovarian cancer, they each had a genetic mutation that made them nine times more likely to develop the disease, Attia-King says. Their story illustrates why Attia-King is so passionate about giving people more access to genetic testing. She explains that existing guidelines for genetic testing suggest testing only if the patient has a personal or family history of cancer or disease. “We are that statistic of people who are missed by the guidelines,” she adds. “We would never be flagged for testing in today’s health care system.” Attia-King recognized the need for a better system while working in sales for a group of genetic laboratories in 2014. “Genetic testing had the potential to revolutionize how health
care is managed, especially preventative health care, yet … more than 80 percent of people could not get tested,” she says. This is largely because insurance companies do not offer wide coverage for genetic testing. Panacea allows people to order a test kit to be shipped to their home. The kit contains a cheek swab that is then sent to a Panacea partner lab. Results take 14 to 21 business days to process, and Panacea’s partner genetic counselors meet with each person to review their results and what they mean for their health. Attia-King explains that while there are other
genetic tests on the market, such as ancestry tests, Panacea promotes in-depth clinical testing, called whole exome sequencing, using next-generation sequencing (NGS) technology. As Attia-King notes, most direct-to-consumer genetic companies do not use NGS and, therefore, cannot provide clinical testing. Panacea’s tests can identify changes in genes related to various cancers as well as some cardiovascular conditions, neurological disorders, and rare diseases. “We’ve barely scratched the surface of how our genes play a role in our health,” she says. (seekpanacea.com) «
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