Quest Diagnostics: Interpretive Guide

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Welcome to the Interpretive Guide. This Guide provides information relating to test selection, utilization, and interpretation. The Guide is continually updated by adding new information and modifying posted information. All information is based on peer-reviewed publications, practice guidelines, or other reputable sources and is intended to be without promotional considerations.

Reference ranges are provided for your convenience and are based on Quest Diagnostics data or published references (where cited). These ranges can serve as a guideline; however, interpretation of patient results should be based on the ranges provided in the patient report.

Included in the Interpretive Guide are four types of information:

•	Test highlights and summaries provide a review of clinical use and background, methodology, specimen requirements, and interpretation of the test.

•	Test guides provide testing algorithms or other information that assists in appropriate test selection.

•	Technology guides compare multiple technologies provided for the same or similar analytes.

•	Clinical focus pages focus on specific diseases or conditions, providing detailed information on what tests are available, how they are incorporated into clinical practice, and what the results mean.

What's New

•	KRAS Mutation Analysis is used to determine the likelihood of resistance to EGFR-targeted therapies such as cetuximab, panitumumab, and erlotinib.
•	The Tick-borne Disease clinical focus has been updated to include more detailed information on each clinical disorder, a strategy for differential diagnosis, and extensive information on the available laboratory tests and their interpretation.
•	The HLA-B*5701 Typing test is useful for assessing risk of hypersensitivity to abacavir therapy, a medication used to treat patients with HIV infection.
•	The CellSearch™´ Circulating Tumor Cells is a test used to predict survival and monitor treatment response in patients with metastic breast, colorectal, or prostate cancer.
•	The Lymphoid Neoplasms Test Guide describes tests available for the differential diagnosis of B-, T-, and natural killer-cell lymphoid neoplasms. Following diagnosis, laboratory test results are also useful to assess prognosis, select therapy, monitory therapeutic response, and detect relapse.