USA Today recently ran a story about the economic impact genetic testing can have on cancer treatments.  It mentions the monoclonal antibody, cetuximab (which BMS and Merck market as Erbitux) for colorectal cancer; 24 doses in the standard treatment cost $61,000.  However, somewhere between a third and a half of CR patients have mutations in the KRas proto-oncogene that render Erbitux ineffective.  A genetic test, costing $452, could distinguish responders from non responders.  The treatment is largely insurance-reimbursable; the genetic test usually isn’t.  MORE