AMP 2013 to focus on genomics, proteomics, informatics, reimbursement and optimization of patient care

AMP will host its largest ever annual meeting next week with an expected attendance of more than 1,700 molecular diagnostic professionals plus 1,300 representatives from more than 180 exhibiting companies. With more than 25 hours of educational sessions and 350 poster presentations, the AMP 2013 Annual Meeting is the premier source for educational information on all things molecular. The event, to be held November 14-16 at the Phoenix Convention Center in Phoenix, AZ will highlight an array of topics focusing on genomics, proteomics, informatics, reimbursement, and optimization of patient care.

The keynote speaker, the winner of AMP Award for Excellence in Molecular Diagnostics, is Stephen Warren, PhD, Professor of Human Genetics at Emory University in Atlanta, GA. Dr. Warren's session, scheduled for Thursday, November 14 at 8:30am MST, is titled "Not Just Triplet Repeats: Conventional mutations of FMR1" and addresses Fragile X Syndrome. The opening plenary session, to be held on Thursday, November 14 at 10:15am MST, encompasses the most fundamental aspect of molecular diagnostics today; that is, gathering, interpreting, and utilizing data generated from genomic testing. Presented by Alexis B. Carter, MD, also from Emory, the session is titled "Clinical Informatics in the Era of Genomic Medicine."

Additional topics to be covered at the AMP meeting include pathogen detection, pre-natal testing, laboratory developed tests, human genetic variations, and the critical issue of reimbursement for molecular testing. Aaron Bossler, MD, PhD, from the University of Iowa, and Jan Nowak, MD, PhD, from NorthShore University Hospital System, co-chairs of the AMP Economic Affairs Committee will be presenting on coding and reimbursement as well as providing a briefing to the press onsite in Phoenix.

Franklin Cockerill, MD, Chair of the Program Committee has been working towards this event for more than a year. Dr. Cockerill notes that meeting attendees, "-will acquire the tools to establish and promote themselves as an integral part of the patient's clinical management team." He went on to say, "The AMP Annual Meeting is unlike any other event in that participants will learn about molecular mechanisms and diagnostic approaches for inheritable as well as acquired disorders and infectious diseases. The take-aways from this event are tremendous."