Medical Oncologist
CION Cancer Clinics
Post-test counselling: what the result session involves | CION Cancer Clinics
Post-test counselling is the appointment where a genetic counsellor explains your report in plain language and agrees what happens next. It covers what the result means for your own care and for relatives, whichever way the result goes. This page explains what is usually covered and how a positive finding changes the session. At CION Cancer Clinics in Hyderabad, our oncologists review your family history with you and guide you to the right genetic counselling and testing.
NG
Medically reviewed by Dr. Naresh GunduConsultant Medical Oncologist · MBBS, DNB (Internal Medicine), DM (Medical Oncology, AIIMS) · last reviewed September 2026, next review due September 2027
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On this page
- What actually happens at the post-test counselling appointment?
- The ground a post-test session usually covers
- What is different about the session if the result is positive
- Terms you will hear in the session
- What a session covers when the result is positive or negative
- What this page cannot tell you
- What people assume about post-test counselling, and what is true
- Common questions about the post-test counselling session
The short answer
What actually happens at the post-test counselling appointment?
Post-test counselling is the appointment where a genetic counsellor explains your report to you in plain language, discusses what it means for you and for relatives, and agrees what happens next. It is a conversation, not simply a letter being read aloud.
Why the result is explained rather than just handed over
A genetic report is written for clinicians and uses technical language that rarely means what it appears to mean at first glance. Explaining it properly, and answering questions as they come up, avoids the misunderstandings that reading a report alone at home can so easily cause.
Who is usually in the room
Typically a genetic counsellor, sometimes alongside your treating oncologist. You are welcome and encouraged to bring a support person, particularly if the result may affect decisions for other family members too. Some clinics also invite a second counsellor to sit in on a complex result, purely so nothing important is missed while you are absorbing the news.
How the conversation is usually paced
A good counsellor checks understanding as they go rather than delivering the whole report in one long explanation. Expect pauses, repeated questions, and time set aside specifically for you to ask whatever comes to mind, even if it feels unrelated to the result itself. There is rarely a strict clock running quietly on this appointment.
Bring the same questions you wrote down while waiting. This session is exactly when they are meant to be asked.What gets covered
The ground a post-test session usually covers
A thorough session moves through the same broad areas regardless of what the result actually says.
What the result actually found
Explained in plain terms first, before any technical language from the report is introduced or discussed.
What it means for your own care
Whether it changes screening, treatment options, or surveillance going forward, explained specifically for your situation.
What it means for relatives
Who else in the family might benefit from testing, and how that conversation can be started with them.
Also discussed
- Whether a family letter will be prepared for relatives
- Any follow-up appointments being arranged
What happens next
A clear plan for follow-up, further testing if needed, and who to contact with questions that occur to you afterwards. This is also where a realistic timeframe is set for when any next appointment should happen, rather than leaving it open-ended.
Not sure whether this applies to you?
Ask an oncologistIf a fault is found
What is different about the session if the result is positive
More time is set aside
A positive result usually gets a longer session, since there is more to explain and more decisions to discuss.
Screening options are laid out
What extra monitoring, if any, is recommended, and roughly what that would involve going forward.
Family testing is discussed
Which relatives could be tested for the exact fault found, and how that conversation might begin.
A written summary is offered
Most counsellors provide something in writing afterwards, since it is a lot to take in during one conversation.
On the day
Terms you will hear in the session
- Post-test counselling
- The appointment where your genetic result is explained to you and next steps are agreed.
- Positive result
- A pathogenic variant has been found. It means raised risk, not a diagnosis of cancer itself.
- Negative result
- No fault was found in the genes tested. It does not remove all risk, only the specific risk that test was looking for.
- Family letter
- A document your counsellor can prepare, summarising the finding for you to share with relatives who may wish to be tested.
- Surveillance plan
- An agreed schedule of scans or checks, based on the result, to catch anything early rather than waiting for symptoms.
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Side by side
What a session covers when the result is positive or negative
A fault is found
No fault is found
Screening and treatment options are discussed in detail
Routine screening for age and background continues
A family letter is usually offered
A family letter is rarely needed
Relatives can be tested for the exact fault
Relatives continue to be watched by family history
A longer session is usually scheduled
The session is often shorter and more straightforward
Being straight with you
What this page cannot tell you
It cannot tell you what your own result means. Every gene, every variant and every family history is different, and interpreting a specific result is exactly what the counselling session itself is for.
It cannot replace bringing your own questions
The most useful post-test sessions are the ones where the person being tested arrives with specific questions rather than waiting to be told everything. A counsellor cannot guess which parts of the result worry you most, and two people given the same report often leave the session with entirely different concerns still unanswered.
It cannot tell you how you will feel afterwards
Some people feel relief even from a positive result, simply because an unknown has finally become a known. Others feel unsettled by a negative result if it does not explain a strong family history. Both reactions are ordinary, and neither means the session went wrong.
Who this does not apply to
Some clinics arrange a shorter phone call for a clearly negative result rather than a full in-person session. If that happens to you, it does not mean anything was rushed or skipped, only that less needed explaining.
If you leave the session still unsure about something, call back. You are not expected to absorb everything in one sitting.Commonly believed
What people assume about post-test counselling, and what is true
"They will just hand me the report and I read it myself."
A counsellor walks through the report with you and explains what the technical language actually means. Reading it alone first is not required and is often unhelpful.
"A negative result means the appointment can be skipped."
Even a negative result usually still needs explaining, since it does not remove all cancer risk, only the specific fault that was being tested for.
"I have to decide everything about telling relatives in that one session."
There is no deadline to decide how or when to tell relatives. Counsellors expect this to be worked through over time, often across more than one conversation.
"Once the session is over, that is the end of the process."
Follow-up is usually built in, whether that is a surveillance plan, a family letter, or a future appointment to revisit the result as guidance changes.
Questions we are asked
Common questions about the post-test counselling session
How long does a post-test counselling session take?
It varies with the result. A clearly negative result may need a shorter session, while a positive result usually needs more time to cover screening and family testing properly.
Can I bring a family member to the session?
Yes, and it is encouraged, particularly since the result may affect decisions for relatives as well as you. Bring whoever you would want to hear this with.
Will I be given something in writing afterwards?
Most clinics provide a written summary, especially after a positive result, since it is a lot of information to remember from one conversation alone.
What if I do not understand something during the session?
Ask again, as many times as you need to. Counsellors expect questions and would rather explain something twice than have you leave unsure.
Do I have to decide about telling relatives at this appointment?
No. This can be discussed over more than one session, and there is no fixed timeframe for deciding how or when to share the result with each relative in the wider family.
Will my oncologist also be at this session?
Sometimes, particularly if the result affects your ongoing cancer treatment. In other cases the counsellor will share the outcome with your oncologist separately.
Is there a follow-up appointment after this one?
Often, yes, especially if a surveillance plan or family testing has been agreed. Your counsellor will confirm what, if anything, is scheduled next.
What if I have more questions after I get home?
Call the clinic or the CION helpline. You are not expected to hold every question until a future appointment.
Your Specialists
Meet CION's oncologists. Bring your family history or genetic report to them.
Our medical oncologists see people with a strong family history of cancer, arrange genetic counselling and testing where it fits, and plan the checks that follow.
Medical Oncologist
Dr. C. Raghavendra Reddy
MBBS(Gold Medal), DNB(General Medicine), DM(Medical Oncology)(Gold Medal)
Medical Oncologist
Dr. Bharati Devi Gorantla
MBBS, MD(General Medicine), DM(Medical Oncology)(Adyar,Chennai), ECMO, MRCP SCE(UK)
Medical Oncologist
Dr. Owais Mohammed
MBBS, MD (General Medicine), DrNB (Medical Oncology), ECMO, MRCP SCE (Medical Oncology) (UK)
Medical Oncologist
Medical Oncologist
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Sources
- National Cancer Institute — Genetic Testing for Inherited Cancer Susceptibility Syndromes
- GeneReviews (NCBI) — Genetic Counseling Principles
- NHS — Predictive genetic tests for cancer risk genes
- Cancer Research UK — Inherited cancer genes and increased cancer risk
This page is general information, not a prescription. Do not change or stop any treatment based on what you read here. If anything is worrying you, contact your own treating team — or call our helpline and we will help you reach the right specialist.
Keep reading
Related pages
How results are given: in person, by phone or in writingThe different formats this session can takeWhat you should leave the appointment withWhat to expect to walk away holdingYour family letter and what to do with itThe document often prepared after a positive resultFollow-up after genetic counsellingWhat happens after this session ends
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