Variant data sharing by clinical laboratories through public databases: consent, privacy and further contact for research policies

Access to detailed variant data is key to inform and verify the interpretation of genomic data. Clinical laboratories can play a significant role in sharing patients' data through public variant databases. To facilitate data sharing, various public databases, such as ClinVar and DECIPHER have been established, which accept data submission from laboratories, clinicians, researchers, and patients. Despite clear benefits to sharing, questions may...