The Ethical Dilemma Of Genetic Testing

In chapter four of her book Genetic Dilemmas, Dena Davis asserts that it is unethical for parents to subject their children to genetic testing for the markers of adult-onset genetic diseases because it places an unfair constraint on a child’s right to an open future. It both removes the child’s ability to choose whether to be tested as an adult and has the potential to negatively alter the overall trajectory of their lives. While the current consensus amongst medical professionals is that such testing should be prohibited (Davis, _____), many concerned parents correctly point out that discouraging such testing creates a conflict of interests between the “beneficence model of patient care and the rights of parents to their own autonomy”

Gina Kolata’s article, Ethics Questions Arise as Genetic Testing of Embryos Increases (2014), explains that as the increase of the testing of embryos for parents to choose whether or not to have children has also brought its ethical questions in the light. Kolata uses the Kalinskys case, a family in the article, and how their neurological disease, Gerstmann-Straussler-Schinker (GSS), has raised questions for ethicists who have looked into the case. Kolata’s purpose in writing this article is to inform the audience on the growing topic of embryo testing and also the ethical question that also accompany in order to have the audience to develop a personal view on the issue. Given how the author explains the technical terms used within the article, Kolata is writing to an audience that is not fully aware of genetic testing.

I do not believe that “direct-to-consumer” genetic testing is wise, especially without the involvement of trained professionals or set guidelines. As mentioned in the prompt, some of the risks that I believe are important involve the ethical and social challenges direct-to-consumer testing can create as well as the complexity of certain genomic tests.

When used in healthcare, genetic testing can show the genetic cause of a disease, confirm a suspected diagnosis of an illness, predict future illnesses, and predict responses to

   The Human Genome Project is the largest scientific endeavor undertaken since the Manhattan Project, and, as with the Manhattan Project, the completion of the Human Genome Project has brought to surface many moral and ethical issues concerning the use of the knowledge gained from the project. Although genetic tests for certain diseases have been available for 15 years (Ridley, 1999), the completion of the Human Genome Project will certainly lead to an exponential increase in the number of genetic tests available. Therefore, before genetic testing becomes a routine part of a visit to a doctor's office, the two main questions at the heart of the controversy surrounding genetic testing must be

Currently, the science field is inventing myriad medications, vaccines, and antimicrobial drugs annually. Even methods to treat and cure diseases have evolved throughout the years. For example, HIV is now able to be controlled; however, the medication is very expensive. Another medical advancement that has developed is genome sequencing. The function of genome sequencing is to look into a person’s DNA and search for future or possible health risks that could develop. Genome sequencing is the only way to know which diseases will affect your baby in the future, and therefore should be used. In this paper I will focus on the article called, “Ethical Issues Arise as Scientists Peek into Baby Genes”, (which is pro genome sequencing) written by

Genetic Testing carries a particular set of ethical, legal, or social implications, depending on the reasoning behind the testing. For example is the test for medical purposes, diagnostic, or predictive with a treatment? Or is the testing done for personal decision-making reasons? That is, predictive without a treatment, carrier, or prenatal? In any circumstance, privacy and confidentiality are critical because the genetic results are directly related to an individual’s identity. Not only is confidentiality an issue for health care, but to prevent genetic discrimination in insurance coverage and employment, as well. Information from a genetic test can affect an entire family. If the disorder is either genetically dominant or carried by an individual,

Since their development and introduction to the field of medicine more than a century ago, genetic screenings have become incorporated in many fields of healthcare, including reproductive health and cancer prevention. Genetic screening is a method of identifying genetic disorders through the study of an individual’s DNA. They can be used to determine predisposition for various disorders such as Alzheimer’s, breast cancer, and sickle cell anemia. Genetic screenings inform individuals about their state of health and can help them make efficient choices in regard to disease treatments and prevention; however they have not gone without controversy. Many feel that such screenings can cause stigma and discrimination against individuals who have

Unfortunately, genetic testing tends towards being inaccurate with specific empirical data missing, and the common tool for its analysis appears to be nothing more than fictionalized scenarios, accompanied by varying interpretations and applications of test results. (B-232) The more common ancestry tests rely on short stretches of DNA in mitochondria, the cell-powering organelles. These mitochondria are inherited through the mother, or on the Y chromosome which is passed down from father to son. Mitochondria and Y chromosomes developed specific changes to them as people migrated around and across the world, and tied them to different populations, but charting an unbroken line along ‘uniparental markers’ (the paternal or maternal line) is

Genetic testing is a medical test that can find and identify changes in proteins, genes or chromosomes. Using a genetic test can confirm or deny a suspected genetic condition, as well as to help determine a person who is possible of carrying on a genetic condition.(NIH, 2016)

The Goal of the Human Genome Project is to obtain genetic mapping information and to determine the complete sequence of all human DNA by the year of 2005. The project started in 1990 and 180 million dollars are being spent on it annually. This adds up to a total of over 2 billion dollars for the 15 year budget. Of this 2 billion dollars budgeted, 5% is spent annually on the ethical, legal and social issues. This report focused on some of these issues.

It’s no secret that many of us seek perfection. Now, scientists have pioneered a way for us to choose or genetically alter embryos, creating the “perfect” child. In heated ethical debates, bioethicists have argued for and against the practice of eugenics and Procreative Beneficence. Recently, medical professionals in the United Kingdom genetically engineered embryos that were prone to inherit a mitochondria disease. This event triggered differing opinions about the genetic manipulation of diseased genes. David Prentice, a lobbyist against eugenics, made the claim that this practice is followed by many ethical infractions. Others such as Art Caplan, director of the Center for Bioethics at the University of Pennsylvania, think of this process as progressive, creating a future of disease free children (Cox).

Is genetic testing really important? Genetic testing is a procedure that helps detect many genetic problems or diseases. Genetic testing is very important and needs to be done to every pregnancy and every human being for genetic diseases. These diseases include sickle cell, diabetes, and Down syndrome. I love genetic testing because I knew that my son had Down Syndrome before I was three months pregnant. I was able to prepare myself as for how my child would be developed and how it’ll affect him for the rest of his life. This disease will not only affect him but me as well. This type of testing can detect Down Syndrome, help people find their unknown family, but the bad part is that not all people can afford for these tests. What if someone

As the effects of genes on human physiology and disease are increasingly being examined in laboratories and clinics across the world, the discussion surrounding informing the family members of tested patients needs to be explored. Previous research has discovered that certain genetic mutations can predict with a high degree of accuracy the rate of occurrence of disease not only in the tested participant but in the family as a whole. One such genetic mutation is a change in the Adenomatous Polyposis Coli (APC) gene and a corresponding increase in the rate of occurrence of Familial Adenomatous Polyposis (FAP). Researchers need to address the question of whether or not to inform the family members of a participant if one of these genes is discovered. In this paper, we discuss whether the researchers have the ethical responsibility to inform the family of a tested participant’s APC status and the implications that will

Some would argue that genetic testing should not be a standard test because they don’t want to falsely worry about a genetic disorder, they may never materialize. There is a possibility that an individual after being tested will find out that they are not a candidate for a certain genetic disease, and it may actually be a source of relief. Depending on the outcome of the test, the individual will at least have an opportunity to prepare the next steps of their lives. Once you have a genetic test done, you will have the knowledge of whether or not you even have a genetic