Michelle Primiano’s research focuses on advancing cancer genetics through healthcare delivery innovation, digital health integration, and population-level risk assessment. Her work is centered on scaling access to genetic services, particularly for historically underserved and linguistically diverse populations, through the design and implementation of patient-facing digital tools and system-level interventions. She has contributed to studies evaluating digital cancer risk assessment platforms and their impact on risk identification, patient engagement, and completion of genetic testing .
Her research emphasizes the integration of genetic risk assessment into routine clinical workflows across primary care, gynecology, and oncology settings, with a focus on operationalizing pathways that improve identification of at-risk individuals and streamline care delivery at scale.
In parallel, her work addresses barriers to genetic testing and incorporates psychosocial support into longitudinal care models to improve patient experience and outcomes.
She has also contributed to cancer genomics research, including the clinical integration of germline and tumor sequencing and the application of whole genome and transcriptome sequencing (WGTS) to support precision oncology.
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Biography
Michelle Primiano, MS, CGC® is a certified genetic counselor with extensive experience in clinical genetics. She is the Associate Director of Clinical Operations for the Genetics and Personalized Cancer Prevention Program, where she leads the scale and integration of cancer genomic services and precision medicine across clinical workflows. Her work focuses on cancer genetics, healthcare delivery, and prevention for high-risk populations.
She has held key clinical and academic leadership roles, including genetic counselor in the Department of Medical Genetics at Columbia University Medical Center/NewYork-Presbyterian and Director of Fieldwork for the Master’s Program in Genetic Counseling at Long Island University, where she led clinical training and program development.
Michelle is a Diplomate of the American Board of Genetic Counseling and holds advanced certifications in pharmacogenomics and cancer genetic risk assessment.
Distinctions:
Women of Weill Cornell Medicine Leadership Networking Program, 2025
WCM Leadership Development Program 2024
Outstanding Supervisor Award, Genetic Counselor Educators Association (GCEA), 2024
