Latest Geneticist Stories

BETHESDA, Md., April 17, 2013 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The U.S. Supreme Court heard arguments Monday in a case seeking to invalidate patents on two genes associated with hereditary breast and ovarian cancer. The American College of Medical Genetics and Genomics (ACMG) was one of the first plaintiffs to sign onto this historic legal case. ACMG was also the first professional medical association to establish a position against gene patenting. In its 1999 ACMG Position Statement on...

BETHESDA, Md., March 28, 2013 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Gail E. Herman, MD, PhD, FACMG of Columbus, Ohio, is the new president of the American College of Medical Genetics and Genomics (ACMG), the national professional organization for clinical genetics professionals. Dr. Herman takes over from Wayne W. Grody, MD, PhD, of Los Angeles, Calif., who completed his two-year term at the 2013 Annual Clinical Genetics Meeting in Phoenix, AZ, in March. "I've been doing clinical genetics...

BETHESDA, Md., Jan. 7, 2013 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The ACMG Foundation for Genetic and Genomic Medicine has been awarded $50,000 for the David L. Rimoin Memorial Fund from the Los Angeles-based Sports Spectacular organization. This donation will support the David L. Rimoin Lifetime Achievement Award as well as provide for genetics training for up-and-coming medical geneticists. The late Dr. David Rimoin was a world-renowned geneticist whose work was supported by the Cedars-Sinai...

BETHESDA, Md., Nov. 7, 2012 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The American College of Medical Genetics and Genomics (ACMG) released a new official Position Statement on the Public Disclosure of Clinically Relevant Genome Variants. This important new statement addresses the problems resulting from gene patent monopolies that have allowed some to develop proprietary databases of the clinical meaning of the variants in particular genes. Michael S. Watson, Ph.D., FACMG, executive director of...

BETHESDA, Md., Oct. 18, 2012 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The American College of Medical Genetics and Genomics (ACMG) has unveiled a new video aimed at encouraging medical students to pursue training in medical genetics. The video, "Medical Genetics is the Future of Medicine," is available on The ACMG Channel on YouTube at www.youtube.com/theacmgchannel and is also being distributed to medical schools and Medical Genetics Training Programs around the country. Individuals may also...

BETHESDA, Md., Feb. 15, 2012 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Technologies that allow for the evaluation of the entire human genome have become increasingly inexpensive and show great promise in clinical application. Among the first of these technologies to move into the practitioner's clinic are the cytogenomic or chromosomal arrays that detect changes in copy number of genetic material throughout the human genome. Rare and new variations have been a part of cytogenetic analysis since...

BETHESDA, Md., Oct. 24, 2011 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The American College of Medical Genetics Board of Directors has voted to add the word "Genomics" to its name, thereby changing the name to "American College of Medical Genetics and Genomics" officially to be in effect at the 2012 ACMG Annual Clinical Genetics meeting in March 2012. The ACMG acronym will remain the same. The ACMG was founded in 1991 in recognition of the importance of the genetic approach to diagnosis, management,...

BETHESDA, Md., Dec. 1 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The American College of Medical Genetics (ACMG) has a long-standing position that genes are products of nature, and as such should not be patentable. ACMG has provided comments to the Secretary's Advisory Committee on Genetics Health and Society (SACGHS) about its views on an ongoing basis. The recent recommendations of the SACGHS recognize that gene patenting is creating problems both in access to genetic testing and in insuring the...