Molecular testing locations

Posted by yakutatcharters @yakutatcharters, Aug 18, 2022

Good morning everyone. I’m feverishly working on helping my dear brother with his very rapid face/neck cancer. He lives in a small fishing town in Alaska so we have to fly to Seattle for all his appointments/treatments (we are here how). What I need help with is…. The Mayo is considering excepting him for Targeted Therapy, but they need (and I’m sorry if I’m asking it wrong) molecular results. The doctor asked “Does your cancer have any targeted mutations?” They need pathology tissue ASAP because it takes weeks to run everything. Where can we go to have Molecular Testing done? The Mayo doctor says it is completed by an outside company. Doesn’t matter what state it’s in. My Brother’s name is Scott (I call him Scottie). This so sucks, I’m sorry everyone has to go through this. Please try to stay positive.

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Hello @yakutatcharters, Welcome to Connect. I know it has to be difficult trying to get help for your brother when living in a remote part of the country. I was not familiar with molecular testing but I did find a lab that may be close enough to help with testing for you or possibly provide a contact for you to get the needed tests.

Molecular Testing Labs - https://moleculartestinglabs.com/
Phone Number: 360-693-8850
Fax: 360-334-6741
Address: 14401 SE 1st Street, Vancouver, WA 98684

Can you let me know what you find out?

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@johnbishop

Hello @yakutatcharters, Welcome to Connect. I know it has to be difficult trying to get help for your brother when living in a remote part of the country. I was not familiar with molecular testing but I did find a lab that may be close enough to help with testing for you or possibly provide a contact for you to get the needed tests.

Molecular Testing Labs - https://moleculartestinglabs.com/
Phone Number: 360-693-8850
Fax: 360-334-6741
Address: 14401 SE 1st Street, Vancouver, WA 98684

Can you let me know what you find out?

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First of all thank you John. Nope, they don’t offer that type of service/results. We’ll keep looking. 😁

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@yakutatcharters

First of all thank you John. Nope, they don’t offer that type of service/results. We’ll keep looking. 😁

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@yakutatcharters, I recommend calling Mayo Clinic to ask for their recommendation of where to get the test your brother needs. I'm not sure which number is best to call, but here are a few options to try:

- The Mayo Clinic department to which your brother is referred.
Do you have a contact person on any of the communication you've had with Mayo thus far?

- The Mayo Clinic patient portal
Does he have a patient medical number (MRN)? Does he already have an account on the patient portal (Patient Online Services)? You may be too early in the process to have this yet.

- Mayo Clinic Laboratories https://www.mayocliniclabs.com/customer-service/contacts
Mayo labs may be able to provide more information and locations.

- Mayo Clinic Concierge Services https://www.mayoclinic.org/patient-visitor-guide/minnesota/concierge-services
Theconciege services can answer a wide range of questions. They may be able to help you find what you need or direct you to the right person to ask.

- Mayo Clinic Appointments https://www.mayoclinic.org/appointments
Call the Mayo Clinic location that is considering your brother's application

I hope this helps. By getting exact details on what is required for your brother's appointment, it would be best to get clarification directly from Mayo Clinic.

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Oh my goodness, thank you Mrs. Young! He does have both MRN and an account. The doctors name is Dr. Savvides. Attached is a snapshot of the email we received.

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@yakutatcharters

Oh my goodness, thank you Mrs. Young! He does have both MRN and an account. The doctors name is Dr. Savvides. Attached is a snapshot of the email we received.

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That’s great that you got such a speedy result. It sounds like the next step is to post a reply on the portal that you would like to go ahead with the testing (if that is what your brother wants).

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Sorry I’m not sure if I said it correctly. In order to potentially see the Mayo doctor, we need to have the molecule testing done first, have the results sent to the Mayo and then how they will see him. As of right now, we are struggling to find (like the Mayo Clinic doctor said) an outside company. That’s what I need help finding. I don’t understand why he can’t just have us come there and have it done. We are just about done with his final appointment so I’ll be able to look up the sites when I get back to the hotel. Thank you, thank you.

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Mrs. Young, I just realized after reading your email again that my brother did get excepted into the Mayo, didn't he? The nurse said, if you are interested in the test that Dr. Savvides is suggesting, let us know. She is basically saying, if you are interested, we would like for you to have it done and sent to us to see if . She is also referencing how long it might take but she is saying the doctor wants to have the test done so he can see if there are any targetable mutations to go after (to see if he is a candidate for targeted therapy, correct?

I don't want to get my hopes up but I believe this is great news.

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@yakutatcharters

Mrs. Young, I just realized after reading your email again that my brother did get excepted into the Mayo, didn't he? The nurse said, if you are interested in the test that Dr. Savvides is suggesting, let us know. She is basically saying, if you are interested, we would like for you to have it done and sent to us to see if . She is also referencing how long it might take but she is saying the doctor wants to have the test done so he can see if there are any targetable mutations to go after (to see if he is a candidate for targeted therapy, correct?

I don't want to get my hopes up but I believe this is great news.

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That is the way I interpreted the email too. That you should inform the nurse that you would like to move forward and they will help with next steps. I would write to her to confirm that.

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@colleenyoung

That is the way I interpreted the email too. That you should inform the nurse that you would like to move forward and they will help with next steps. I would write to her to confirm that.

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I spoke to my brother and he has in fact responded and said he interested. Have not heard back yet, but very hopeful for tomorrow (Friday). Thanks again.

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