Inaccuracy 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”

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.

   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

Recreational genetics: Some genetic testing carries no risk of impact on health or wellbeing. For example, “recreational” genetics may involve testing the type of earwax one has, while “genealogy” or “ancestry” genetics may involve determining which country a person’s original ancestors came from. DTC can be very convenient for this type of genetic testing. Paternity testing and forensic genetics: Genetic testing can be used to establish the identity of people, and to test if two people are related to each other. This type of testing is highly regulated by the courts and involves testing in accredited pathology laboratories. Community genetics: Community genetics offers testing directly to the consumer, but only as part of a full healthcare program involving accredited pathology laboratories and registered health practitioners. Community genetics is often relevant to consumers from particular geographic origins and community groups, and can be used to screen for risk of particular inherited disorders such as “Tay-Sachs disease” which is a serious disorder affecting young children. Medical genetics: Genetic testing is increasingly used to diagnose a range of diseases including inherited disorders and some cancers. This type of testing is only carried out as part of a medical consultation, and the treating practitioner will use an accredited laboratory to test the sample and

4. Many tribal citizens are skeptical and untrusting of the testing process and the companies who do

Tyson describes several aspects of personal DNA testing. He discusses that insurance companies may see people’s genetic profiles and hold it against them (Tyson). This is scary because personal information

Bernard Webster was a victim of racial misidentification when in 1982 a schoolteacher was raped in her own home by a black stranger and identified Webster as her attacker in a photo lineup. Other residents of her apartment complex also picked him out of the lineup. In 1983 he was convicted guilty and sentenced to 30 years in prison, but he maintained his innocence and sought aid in proving his innocence, which was impossible until DNA testing came about. The examination of slides from the hospital where the victim was treated 20 years prior proved Bernard Webster’s innocence, and he was exonerated two thirds into his sentence (“Mid-Atlantic”). Unfortunately, many more innocent people have been wrongfully imprisoned because of their race, be it due to blatant racism or just cross-racial misidentification, and our current Justice System does little to stop this from happening.

This article argues that race is not only a social construction, but that genetics also play an increasingly pertinent role. The author supports this claim by analyzing the genetic tracings of many medical institutes whose purpose is to discover one’s ancestry. The author claims these genetic links are increasingly important because many grants, applications, scholarships, and the like are determined by one’s racial status. The author also claims that genetic racial differences are important because the white male has been used as the standard in medical practices and the author feels that needs to change.

Although genetic testing can benefit society in numerous ways, such as the diagnosis of vulnerabilities to inherited diseases and ancestry verification, it also has the precarious capability to become a tool in selecting a more favorable genetic makeup of an individuals and ultimately cloning humans. Genetic testing will depreciate our quality of life and may result in discrimination, invasion of privacy, and harmful gene therapy.

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.

Speaking honestly about the benefits and limitations of genetic testing is vital in establishing a trusting patient-provider relationship. The severe socioeconomic consequences of employee and insurance discrimination can greatly impact a black woman’s motivation to invest in genetic testing. Although the federal law of 2008, Genetic Information Non-Discrimination Act (GINA) does exist, black women may not feel entirely protected

If I could I would receive genetic testing to better inform myself if I was a carrier for this gene. I would want to know because regardless of how discouraged I may feel, being prepared for the future of my family is important to me. I would want to know so that this way I could plan and make any arrangements necessary to help my family out.

In 2015 genetic testing has advanced so much that the ability to make specific changes in our babies is now a reality. Is it right to choose science over nature? Could life be better for our future if we “enhanced ourselves,” by genetic testing during pre-birth? Eight years ago, Singer (2007) asked the same question: “Is the use of reproductive technology acceptable?” (Choosing babies, p. 86). For more than ten years now scientists have been using enhanced fertility methods for reproductive challenged families called in vitro fertilization (IVF). IVF is a procedure that allows for an egg from the female and sperm from the male to be combined in a laboratory, and once the two successfully combine producing an embryo it is then transferred into the females’ uterus.

A brief foundation on the subject: ethnicity testing really began with the supposition that every single person started in Africa. This very particular test is the first of its kind to be produced. The test can report part European, part African, and part East Asian family line. To delineate, an individual could have a conceivable consequence of 75% European and 25% East Asian. Still there are other people who may turn out as 40% African, 35% European, and 25% East

An individual ethnicity play a vital role in genetic testing. Racial and ethnic difference can relate to the cause, expression and prevalence of certain diseases. In some ethnic group there is an increased propensity for certain genetic disorders and knowing an individual’s ethnicity can provide additional information during genetic testing.