Clearity Overview

The Clearity Foundation has been helping patients acquire and interpret their tumor blueprints for over three years. We are a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit and we provide patient support services including diagnostic test coordination, tumor blueprint interpretation and clinical trial identification free of charge.

Clearity has identified a comprehensive set of tests and coordinates with several diagnostic labs to assist patients in acquiring their ovarian tumor blueprints. Clearity has a unique, comprehensive method for interpreting test results that is based on both scientific literature and patient data.

Understanding your blueprint may help you to make more informed treatment decisions and also help find the right clinical trial or other treatment for you. We believe tumor profiling is most helpful in certain situations.

Tumor profiling may be useful if:

  • I am a newly diagnosed Stage 3c or Stage 4 patient with a high grade tumor and I have had surgery in the past six months
  • I am having a recurrence since my first diagnosis and my doctor has planned another surgery or a biopsy to remove tumor tissue
  • I have had a recurrence since my first diagnosis and another surgery or biopsy was performed to remove tumor tissue during the last two years
  • I am having a second or third recurrence and I have had a surgery or biopsy to remove tumor tissue in the last year

Forms

Clearity primarily partners with two diagnostic companies, Caris Life Sciences and Clarient Inc., to generate tumor blueprints for patients. To begin the process, please fully complete both steps and submit as stated. Please note: Submitting all of the requested forms and copies will help Clearity insure you receive your testing results in a timely manner. Feel free to contact Clearity at 858.459.5177 or mary.buhler@clearityfoundation.org with questions or concerns.

  1. Patient Background Form
    Fully complete the background questions and submit your information securely to Clearity online. Please consult your doctor’s office if you have questions about the details of your medical history.
  2. Clearity Forms
    Download, complete and fax (858.657.0265) or email (mary.buhler@clearityfoundation.org) The Clearity Consent Form and The Clearity Authorization For Release Form to Clearity.

Need help filling out the forms? See an example of these forms filled out here..

The forms included in the “Clearity Forms” pdf download are:

  1. The Clearity Consent Form (last page only needed)
    This form states your permission for the Clearity Foundation to run tests on your tumor samples and retain copies of your data for research purposes.
  2. The Clearity Authorization For Release Form (1 page)
    This form allows Clearity to request and obtain your tumor sample and pathology report from your doctors.
    3. Please also provide:

  3. Insurance Card(s)
    If you are insured; please include a front and back copy of your insurance card(s).
  4. Pathology Report [optional]
    If available, a copy of your most recent pathology report (corresponding with the tumor biopsy you would like us to profile). If you do not have a copy on hand Clearity will be happy to obtain one on your behalf.

Lab Costs and Grant Support

The Clearity Foundation provides its patient support services including diagnostic test coordination, tumor blueprint interpretation and clinical trial identification free of charge. In addition, we may be able to help patients pay for the costs of diagnostic tests. The cost of the diagnostic testing can vary depending on your medical insurance.

We are committed to helping women with ovarian cancer make more informed treatment decisions regardless of her ability to pay and our grant process exists as a way of identifying patients that need financial assistance. If you are in need of financial help do not hesitate to fill out our assistance form.

  • Financial Assistance Form
    Fill out this form to determine if you may be eligible for financial support from The Clearity Foundation.

Test Results & Interpretation

From the time the diagnostic laboratory receives the sample, it typically takes 10 to 14 days to get results from the first panel of tests and an additional 3 -5 days to get the results from the second panel. The laboratory test results are provided from Caris and Clarient to your doctor and to Clearity immediately and the Clearity summary report will follow approximately 2 days later. The Caris and Clarient reports include some information about how your results relate to scientific evidence about ovarian cancer treatment.

The comprehensive report that you receive from The Clearity Foundation summarizes all of your test results together and compares them to a broad range of scientific information. Refer to Drugs and Biomarkers for more information. In addition, Clearity interprets the individual patient test results in comparison to other ovarian cancer patient profiles that are stored in our privacy-protected Diane Barton Database. This comparison enables your results to be interpreted relative those from other ovarian cancer patients and subsequently correlated to the published clinical evidence for each test This interpretation is valuable to discuss with your clinical team as you are evaluating different treatment options.

Treatment Options

Ovarian cancer tumors are very different from patient to patient, which means they are likely to respond differently to FDA-approved and investigational drugs. We believe that learning what’s going on inside the cancer cell can provide the best information and lead to better treatment choices. By identifying the alterations in each tumor’s information pathways, molecular profiling enables the individualization of a patient’s treatment by matching those tumor alterations with one or more drugs. If your tests show that your cancer may be sensitive to a particular drug or investigational compound, we will help you work together with your doctor to find a drug or clinical trial for your future treatment. If your cancer continues to progress, the Clearity Foundation will help you and your doctor with treatment options, including facilitating choices for clinical trials.