topic 23andMe genetic testing- is it worth the $199 price tag? in Community Chat

23andMe genetic testing- is it worth the $199 price tag?

sgraham30 — Tue, 18 Oct 2016 02:06:13 GMT

Has anyone here ever had the 23andMe genetic testing done? If you have, what did you think of it? Was it worth the $199 price that they charge? I've read reviews on their website, they were really mixed. Based on symptoms I've told her I have, my allergist suspects that I might have the MTHFR defect & the COMT defect. I want to find out for sure if I do have them & see what other things might be going on with me. Thanks in advance for any responses.

Re: 23andMe genetic testing- is it worth the $199 price tag?

Moonchilde — Tue, 18 Oct 2016 02:15:33 GMT

Most people do not use $100-200 DNA testing to discover health-related gene mutations for the simple reason that the companies do not test for every gene or mutation it's possible to have. The results of the testing do not come back to you as an easily-read laundry list of all your abnormalities.

Not to mention you would have to have DNA tested from both female and male family members. If you can't do this you only get half the information.

Re: 23andMe genetic testing- is it worth the $199 price tag?

sgraham30 — Tue, 18 Oct 2016 02:46:37 GMT

@Moonchilde wrote:
Most people do not use $100-200 DNA testing to discover health-related gene mutations for the simple reason that the companies do not test for every gene or mutation it's possible to have. The results of the testing do not come back to you as an easily-read laundry list of all your abnormalities.

Not to mention you would have to have DNA tested from both female and male family members. If you can't do this you only get half the information.

I figured it was too good to be true, you get what you pay for. I read a lot of one star reviews by people who had it done for health reasons. Most of them said that it was a waste of money. The testing that I want costs thousands of dollars. My insurance doesn't cover it & I can't afford to pay for it myself.

As I understand it, for 23andMe, there are places (not sure of the names of the businesses ) where you can send the raw data & they interpret it for you for an additional fee, then on top of that, you have the expense for a doctor's office visit to show your doctor the interpreted data.

Re: 23andMe genetic testing- is it worth the $199 price tag?

JaneMarple — Tue, 18 Oct 2016 02:52:38 GMT

n/m

Re: 23andMe genetic testing- is it worth the $199 price tag?

sgraham30 — Tue, 18 Oct 2016 02:49:59 GMT

@JaneMarple wrote:
O P please read the reviews from here on the forums, many of your questions can be answered from those who have done the test.

I read your previous response, see my response to you in the post above this post. I got my response by reading the 1 star reviews at the 23andMe website.

Re: 23andMe genetic testing- is it worth the $199 price tag?

granny me — Tue, 18 Oct 2016 03:01:51 GMT

I have a rare cancer; one in a million. When diagnosed 2010 I was asked to participate in a spit test for genetic markers. At the time, I didn't know where the sample was going, but later found out it was 23 and Me. After several months I received a report showing a lot of data about genes and my cancer marker.

At that time, the report told of your "Elevated Risk"

which included what was individual to you; breast cancer, stomach cancer, cornary disease etc. It would tell the average percent then your percent. There was a warning before opening if you wanted to know about Parkinsons, Alziheimers, and one other can't remember. There were numerous diseases that gave you a risk based on your genes.

Now, 23 can't and won't give you those numbers and results due to some lawsuit. You will get basic information, hair type, eye color.

My report did not show any indication that I would have had that type of cancer.

It also should anestery markers and as close as it could get was third to fifth cousins worldwide.

I see a report like this as a fun thing but not a true DNA testing.

Re: 23andMe genetic testing- is it worth the $199 price tag?

mac116 — Tue, 18 Oct 2016 03:01:56 GMT

My sister did it as a way to work on family geneology. Our deceased relatives never wanted to talk about "their stories". We were not sure of nationalities, etc. While the results were not country specific (Poland, Lithuania, etc) they were regionally specific as Eastern European. We learned that we were also a high percentage of Scandinavian, which we did not know. TRUE?? Not sure, but interesting to our family. I'm glad she was willing to pay for it and share the info with the rest of the siblings.

Re: 23andMe genetic testing- is it worth the $199 price tag?

sgraham30 — Tue, 18 Oct 2016 03:22:05 GMT

Thank you for your responses!

Re: 23andMe genetic testing- is it worth the $199 price tag?

sgraham30 — Tue, 18 Oct 2016 03:24:11 GMT

@granny me wrote:
I have a rare cancer; one in a million. When diagnosed 2010 I was asked to participate in a spit test for genetic markers. At the time, I didn't know where the sample was going, but later found out it was 23 and Me. After several months I received a report showing a lot of data about genes and my cancer marker.

At that time, the report told of your "Elevated Risk"
which included what was individual to you; breast cancer, stomach cancer, cornary disease etc. It would tell the average percent then your percent. There was a warning before opening if you wanted to know about Parkinsons, Alziheimers, and one other can't remember. There were numerous diseases that gave you a risk based on your genes.

Now, 23 can't and won't give you those numbers and results due to some lawsuit. You will get basic information, hair type, eye color.

My report did not show any indication that I would have had that type of cancer.

It also should anestery markers and as close as it could get was third to fifth cousins worldwide.

I see a report like this as a fun thing but not a true DNA testing.

Thank you for your response. I'm sorry to hear that you're ill, I hope you're doing better. Your review says pretty much the same thing that the 1 star reviews that I read at 23andMe.com said. It sounds like the "old" version was better than the "new" version.

Re: 23andMe genetic testing- is it worth the $199 price tag?

Chrystaltree2 — Tue, 18 Oct 2016 12:16:37 GMT

I really don't think it's meant to be used for medical purposes. And since you are neither a geneticist nor a medical statistician, you wouldn't know how to interpret the results or what they even mean. However, if genetic testing is needed to determine or guide your medical care, your allergist can do whatever testing he deems necessary and it's covered under health insurance. I work in healthcare and I find it absolutely mindboggling how much genetic testing is being done now in patient care settings. Not just to know but to direct patient care. But the interpretations are done by physicians who specialize in the genetics of medicine. It's a specific skill set that the average physician doesn't even have, they confer with the specialists. And why anyone really trust some pay-to-play site that you know nothing about to tell you the truth about anything? $199 is a heck of a lot of money to shell out when you don't know what you are even getting or who is giving it to you. For all you know, there's a bunch of college students in a room making everything up as the checks come in...lol Or there are 50 canned responses that they pull at random and send out.....as those checks come in.

Re: 23andMe genetic testing- is it worth the $199 price tag?

Chrystaltree2 — Tue, 18 Oct 2016 12:23:57 GMT

@sgraham30 wrote:
@Moonchilde wrote:
Most people do not use $100-200 DNA testing to discover health-related gene mutations for the simple reason that the companies do not test for every gene or mutation it's possible to have. The results of the testing do not come back to you as an easily-read laundry list of all your abnormalities.

Not to mention you would have to have DNA tested from both female and male family members. If you can't do this you only get half the information.
I figured it was too good to be true, you get what you pay for. I read a lot of one star reviews by people who had it done for health reasons. Most of them said that it was a waste of money. The testing that I want costs thousands of dollars. My insurance doesn't cover it & I can't afford to pay for it myself.

As I understand it, for 23andMe, there are places (not sure of the names of the businesses ) where you can send the raw data & they interpret it for you for an additional fee, then on top of that, you have the expense for a doctor's office visit to show your doctor the interpreted data.

Please, get real. You bring junk like that to your doc and she'll laugh you out of her office. And you are wrong about insurance coverage for genetic testing. Totally wrong. It's covered but not for people who are just curious. It's covered when the results are needed to diagnose, treat or prescribe medication for a specific illness. Many cancer treatments are now based on our genetics. There are heart medications that are genetically based. There are treatments for benign brain tumors that are genetically based. That's the direction that medicine is going in now. And the testing does cost thousands of dollars. And it's done in specialized, credentialed labs by professionals.

Re: 23andMe genetic testing- is it worth the $199 price tag?

Chrystaltree2 — Tue, 18 Oct 2016 12:29:16 GMT

@mac116 wrote:
My sister did it as a way to work on family geneology. Our deceased relatives never wanted to talk about "their stories". We were not sure of nationalities, etc. While the results were not country specific (Poland, Lithuania, etc) they were regionally specific as Eastern European. We learned that we were also a high percentage of Scandinavian, which we did not know. TRUE?? Not sure, but interesting to our family. I'm glad she was willing to pay for it and share the info with the rest of the siblings.

That's what it's meant for, for those people who want to know something about their geneology. However, you would have to take anything you get with a grain of salt but that doesn't matter because simply knowing that 23% of your genes come from Germanic populations doesn't mean anything. it doesn't tell you anything about yourself or your family history or your family background. I can only speak for myself but my genetic mix doesn't interest me. I'm still me. It's my family history, the people and the stories that interest me. There are no tests for that......

Re: 23andMe genetic testing- is it worth the $199 price tag?

sgraham30 — Tue, 18 Oct 2016 12:45:26 GMT

@Chrystaltree2 wrote:
@sgraham30 wrote:
@Moonchilde wrote:
Most people do not use $100-200 DNA testing to discover health-related gene mutations for the simple reason that the companies do not test for every gene or mutation it's possible to have. The results of the testing do not come back to you as an easily-read laundry list of all your abnormalities.

Not to mention you would have to have DNA tested from both female and male family members. If you can't do this you only get half the information.
I figured it was too good to be true, you get what you pay for. I read a lot of one star reviews by people who had it done for health reasons. Most of them said that it was a waste of money. The testing that I want costs thousands of dollars. My insurance doesn't cover it & I can't afford to pay for it myself.

As I understand it, for 23andMe, there are places (not sure of the names of the businesses ) where you can send the raw data & they interpret it for you for an additional fee, then on top of that, you have the expense for a doctor's office visit to show your doctor the interpreted data.

Please, get real. You bring junk like that to your doc and she'll laugh you out of her office. And you are wrong about insurance coverage for genetic testing. Totally wrong. It's covered but not for people who are just curious. It's covered when the results are needed to diagnose, treat or prescribe medication for a specific illness. Many cancer treatments are now based on our genetics. There are heart medications that are genetically based. There are treatments for benign brain tumors that are genetically based. That's the direction that medicine is going in now. And the testing does cost thousands of dollars. And it's done in specialized, credentialed labs by professionals.

I'm glad to see that you're aware of what my insurance does or doesn't cover. Instead of referring to my handbook, should I contact you when I want to know if/when something is covered? I'm aware that the "good" testing costs thousands of $$$, I actually make that statement in my post. My allergist is the one that recommended 23andMe so I'm pretty sure she wouldn't laugh me out of her office.

I'm normally not rude or snarky but when I get it, I'm going to give it back.

Re: 23andMe genetic testing- is it worth the $199 price tag?

Stray — Tue, 18 Oct 2016 12:50:23 GMT

I am a nurse and when I worked OB/GYN, had extensive experience with genetic testing and that being said:

if your doctor suspects you have a genetic predisposition to a disease, he/she should send you to a reputable genetics department and/or lab. You should not be searching on a laypersons website for the same level of accuracy. Any medical doctor would not accept these results nor treat you based on results.

I had my dna tested as I was curious about my ethnic background and did it for fun and these websites and services were not created for medical purposes.

Go to a medical lab lab if you are serious about the source of your symptoms and if they are linked to genetics. It's more expensive but the results are accurate and are often accompanied by explanations, interpretations and counseling. With genetics, it's not just reading a lab report but understanding it re implications to you and possibly others.

Re: 23andMe genetic testing- is it worth the $199 price tag?

Trinity11 — Tue, 18 Oct 2016 13:14:20 GMT

I did the ancestry.com and then for $5, sent the results to Prometheas.com. I received a lot of genetic info that told me what genes I have for certain diseases. I found the results quite accurate.

Re: 23andMe genetic testing- is it worth the $199 price tag?

Trinity11 — Tue, 18 Oct 2016 13:20:29 GMT

@Chrystaltree2 wrote:
@sgraham30 wrote:
@Moonchilde wrote:
Most people do not use $100-200 DNA testing to discover health-related gene mutations for the simple reason that the companies do not test for every gene or mutation it's possible to have. The results of the testing do not come back to you as an easily-read laundry list of all your abnormalities.

Not to mention you would have to have DNA tested from both female and male family members. If you can't do this you only get half the information.
I figured it was too good to be true, you get what you pay for. I read a lot of one star reviews by people who had it done for health reasons. Most of them said that it was a waste of money. The testing that I want costs thousands of dollars. My insurance doesn't cover it & I can't afford to pay for it myself.

As I understand it, for 23andMe, there are places (not sure of the names of the businesses ) where you can send the raw data & they interpret it for you for an additional fee, then on top of that, you have the expense for a doctor's office visit to show your doctor the interpreted data.

Please, get real. You bring junk like that to your doc and she'll laugh you out of her office. And you are wrong about insurance coverage for genetic testing. Totally wrong. It's covered but not for people who are just curious. It's covered when the results are needed to diagnose, treat or prescribe medication for a specific illness. Many cancer treatments are now based on our genetics. There are heart medications that are genetically based. There are treatments for benign brain tumors that are genetically based. That's the direction that medicine is going in now. And the testing does cost thousands of dollars. And it's done in specialized, credentialed labs by professionals.

4 of my physicians reviewed my Prometheus results and were very impressed. No one laughed me out of the office. I cannot take a med for my heart because I have a gene that prohibits it. That was why I had a very bad reaction to it and Prometheus results confirmed it.

Re: 23andMe genetic testing- is it worth the $199 price tag?

Stray — Tue, 18 Oct 2016 13:40:05 GMT

@Trinity11 wrote:
@Chrystaltree2 wrote:
@sgraham30 wrote:
@Moonchilde wrote:
Most people do not use $100-200 DNA testing to discover health-related gene mutations for the simple reason that the companies do not test for every gene or mutation it's possible to have. The results of the testing do not come back to you as an easily-read laundry list of all your abnormalities.

Not to mention you would have to have DNA tested from both female and male family members. If you can't do this you only get half the information.
I figured it was too good to be true, you get what you pay for. I read a lot of one star reviews by people who had it done for health reasons. Most of them said that it was a waste of money. The testing that I want costs thousands of dollars. My insurance doesn't cover it & I can't afford to pay for it myself.

As I understand it, for 23andMe, there are places (not sure of the names of the businesses ) where you can send the raw data & they interpret it for you for an additional fee, then on top of that, you have the expense for a doctor's office visit to show your doctor the interpreted data.

Please, get real. You bring junk like that to your doc and she'll laugh you out of her office. And you are wrong about insurance coverage for genetic testing. Totally wrong. It's covered but not for people who are just curious. It's covered when the results are needed to diagnose, treat or prescribe medication for a specific illness. Many cancer treatments are now based on our genetics. There are heart medications that are genetically based. There are treatments for benign brain tumors that are genetically based. That's the direction that medicine is going in now. And the testing does cost thousands of dollars. And it's done in specialized, credentialed labs by professionals.
4 of my physicians reviewed my Prometheus results and were very impressed. No one laughed me out of the office. I cannot take a med for my heart because I have a gene that prohibits it. That was why I had a very bad reaction to it and Prometheus results confirmed it.

@Trinity11- there is a big difference with genetic testing and predisposition to certain diseases based on ethnic background than if you are looking for a certain link re a disease and treatment will be based upon those results. If you are predisposed to Tay-Sachs, Cooley's Anemia, Sickle cell anemia etc., there isn't much you can do about it; it is interesting and maybe important to future generations if you are asymptomatic and healthy. But, if you are trying to make a diagnosis and connect it to genetics, I can't imagine any doctor accepting the results from a non medical source and without an explanation from a geneticist....often, the reports are comprehensive and difficult to understand but an expert explains what it means to you and future generations....if a physician is concerned about genetics and a link to certain disease and feels it is important to care and serious enough to mention, he/she will refer to a reputable lab and not rely on a website where a person self refers. I had DNA testing done myself but not for medical reasons. The websites are fine but should be used in the correct way.

Re: 23andMe genetic testing- is it worth the $199 price tag?

Trinity11 — Tue, 18 Oct 2016 13:47:41 GMT

@Stray wrote:
@Trinity11 wrote:
@Chrystaltree2 wrote:
@sgraham30 wrote:
@Moonchilde wrote:
Most people do not use $100-200 DNA testing to discover health-related gene mutations for the simple reason that the companies do not test for every gene or mutation it's possible to have. The results of the testing do not come back to you as an easily-read laundry list of all your abnormalities.

Not to mention you would have to have DNA tested from both female and male family members. If you can't do this you only get half the information.
I figured it was too good to be true, you get what you pay for. I read a lot of one star reviews by people who had it done for health reasons. Most of them said that it was a waste of money. The testing that I want costs thousands of dollars. My insurance doesn't cover it & I can't afford to pay for it myself.

As I understand it, for 23andMe, there are places (not sure of the names of the businesses ) where you can send the raw data & they interpret it for you for an additional fee, then on top of that, you have the expense for a doctor's office visit to show your doctor the interpreted data.

Please, get real. You bring junk like that to your doc and she'll laugh you out of her office. And you are wrong about insurance coverage for genetic testing. Totally wrong. It's covered but not for people who are just curious. It's covered when the results are needed to diagnose, treat or prescribe medication for a specific illness. Many cancer treatments are now based on our genetics. There are heart medications that are genetically based. There are treatments for benign brain tumors that are genetically based. That's the direction that medicine is going in now. And the testing does cost thousands of dollars. And it's done in specialized, credentialed labs by professionals.
4 of my physicians reviewed my Prometheus results and were very impressed. No one laughed me out of the office. I cannot take a med for my heart because I have a gene that prohibits it. That was why I had a very bad reaction to it and Prometheus results confirmed it.
@Trinity11- there is a big difference with genetic testing and predisposition to certain diseases based on ethnic background than if you are looking for a certain link re a disease and treatment will be based upon those results. If you are predisposed to Tay-Sachs, Cooley's Anemia, Sickle cell anemia etc., there isn't much you can do about it; it is interesting and maybe important to future generations if you are asymptomatic and healthy. But, if you are trying to make a diagnosis and connect it to genetics, I can't imagine any doctor accepting the results from a non medical source and without an explanation from a geneticist....often, the reports are comprehensive and difficult to understand but an expert explains what it means to you and future generations....if a physician is concerned about genetics and a link to certain disease and feels it is important to care and serious enough to mention, he/she will refer to a reputable lab and not rely on a website where a person self refers. I had DNA testing done myself but not for medical reasons. The websites are fine but should be used in the correct way.

The test came back I had the BRCA gene for breast cancer which I already had years ago. It confirmed a lot. I was very happy with my results confirming much of what I already suspected. None of the results were to prove anything to my physicians....they were for myself and I found the results accurate.