Making Sense of a Positive Genetic Test Result for Huntington Disease

June 30, 2017 updated by: National Human Genome Research Institute (NHGRI)

Meaning Making Among Asymptomatic Individuals With a Positive Presymptomatic Genetic Test Result for Huntington Disease

This exploratory study will examine ways in which individuals approach a positive genetic test for Huntington Disease (HD). HD is a neurodegenerative disorder that causes emotional, cognitive, and movement problems, and currently there is no way to prevent, stop or reverse the progression of the disease. It is passed down through a mutation in a normal gene, and each child of an HD parent has a 50-50 chance of inheriting the HD gene. The study is designed to explore how individuals adjust to their new genetic status and evaluate any perceived mental or emotional barriers to that adjustment. Currently, little is known about how individuals come to terms with a positive genetic test result for a condition that has no known cure or effective treatment. The results of this study may give health care providers and counselors more information about how to help patients who are at risk for developing HD make sense of their new genetic status.

Candidates will be prescreened and referred to the study by clinics that specialize in genetic testing and counseling. Candidates must be 18 years old or older and must have received a positive genetic test result for HD at least one month prior to the study. They must also perceive themselves to be asymptomatic-that is, without existing HD symptoms.

During the study, participants will be interviewed and asked a series of questions about their decision to pursue testing, their life since the testing, and the things that they have found helpful or unhelpful since receiving the test results. The interviews will be recorded and will last approximately 60 minutes. Participants also will receive a follow-up phone call within two to three days to ensure their general psychological well-being after the interview.

Study Overview

Status

Completed

Conditions

Detailed Description

Huntington Disease (HD) is a progressive neurological condition, eventually leading to death. Presymptomatic, predictive genetic testing can inform individuals of their genetic status. A positive genetic test result can be a threatening event. In adapting to threatening events people often try and find meaning in the experience. Meaning making refers to the attempt to understand an event or experience and its significance in the context of one's life. The search for meaning can eventually lead to acceptance of an event or experience, and is considered an important component of adaptation. Although it has been established that testing for HD can be a significantly stressful event, and that meaning making is a frequent response towards adaptation, little is known about this process among individuals faced with a positive genetic test result for HD. This study will describe meaning making in a population of presymptomatic individuals with a positive genetic test result for HD.

Semi-structured interviews will be conducted, recorded, transcribed, and analyzed. A typology of common themes will be compiled and reported. Data gathered from these interviews will improve understanding of the phenomenon of meaning making in this population, and will contribute to the existing literature on the role of meaning making in cognitive adaptation. This study will specifically help gain insight into the process of meaning making among individuals who have tested positive for HD, and may potentially inform the ways in which health care professionals can help facilitate meaning-making among this population, in their process of adaptation to a stressful live event.

Study Type

Observational

Enrollment

50

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

Study Locations

  • United States
    • Maryland
      • Baltimore, Maryland, United States, 21205
        • Johns Hopkins University
      • Bethesda, Maryland, United States, 20892
        • National Human Genome Research Institute (NHGRI), 9000 Rockville Pike
    • Pennsylvania
      • Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States, 15261
        • University of Pittsburgh
    • Texas
      • Houston, Texas, United States, 77030
        • Baylor College of Medicine

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Ages Eligible for Study

18 years and older (Adult, Older Adult)

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Genders Eligible for Study

All

Description

  • ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA:

Participants for this study will be men and women, age 18 or older, who have undergone presymptomatic genetic testing for HD, received a positive test result and currently perceive themselves as being asymptomatic. To obtain a range of experiences, the investigator (PR) will attempt to recruit individuals with a range of elapsed time since their positive test result.

INCLUSION CRITERIA:

  • 18 years or older
  • Able to speak and understand English
  • Received results that they believe are positive at least one month ago
  • Perceive themselves to be asymptomatic
  • Willing and able to read and describe the consent form before the phone interview

EXCLUSION CRITERIA:

  • Test result less than a month ago
  • Believe that they got a negative test result
  • Believe themselves to be symptomatic
  • Obvious symptoms of dementia or serious mental illness that would preclude consent

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Sponsor

National Human Genome Research Institute (NHGRI)

Publications and helpful links

The person responsible for entering information about the study voluntarily provides these publications. These may be about anything related to the study.

General Publications

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start

October 1, 2007

Study Completion

August 5, 2008

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

October 4, 2007

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

October 4, 2007

First Posted (Estimate)

October 5, 2007

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

July 2, 2017

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

June 30, 2017

Last Verified

August 5, 2008

More Information

Terms related to this study

Keywords

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

  • 999908005
  • 08-HG-N005

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

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