Thanks to the deep-sequencing technologies, the past decade has seen the characterization of nucleic acid alterations in a wide range of cancers generating a large body of information how cancer develops and evolves. Likewise genomic testing has moved from a research activity limited to specialized institutes, to a clinical test available in dozens of academic and commercial laboratories.

A new healthcare delivery model is evolving that uses a patient’s genomic information to guide treatment decisions. In this working group we will define and discuss some of the key terms and tools in genomic testing that primary care practitioners and specialists should know when dealing with cancer patients.