Genetic testing is a key part of modern cancer care. It can reveal mutations in your tumor that help doctors choose targeted treatments. But sometimes the results show a “variant of unknown significance,” or VUS. This means there’s a change in your DNA that researchers don’t fully understand yet, so doctors can’t say for sure whether a treatment would work.
This happens more often in people with African, Asian, Hispanic, or Indigenous ancestry—not because of biology, but because most genetic databases have historically focused on people of European descent. If your background is underrepresented in these databases, it’s more likely your test result will be unclear.
Doctors are working to better understand these unknown mutations by expanding research and improving how genetic data is interpreted. Over time, more variants will be decoded—and what’s uncertain today may lead to new treatment options tomorrow.
For now, if your test includes a VUS result, don’t be discouraged. It’s still valuable information, and you can ask your care team whether additional testing, clinical trials, or updated interpretations could help guide your treatment path. (Source: Memorial Sloan Kettering)
