Genetic testing: Want to know your future?
Some forms of commercial genetic testing promise something like this kind of future-telling. But you need to think long and hard about peeking into your own genes to see what they hold in store for your health. It may not be so easy to cope with the bad news that could result. And it is likely that other people could know your genetic future even if you do not consent to tell them.
Let's say you send your spit (yes, spit is the source of DNA for this kind of testing) off to one of the many companies advertising direct-to-consumer genetic testing and the results showed you had a huge risk of a fatal disease.
Would that freak you out? Would you want to get this news in a letter sent by overnight mail? Wouldn't you prefer to have someone available to counsel you about what negative findings mean and what to do about them?
There are people who say they don't need help dealing with whatever the genetic tests reveal. And a new study sponsored by one of the genetic testing companies, 23andMe, backs them up -- sort of. The study suggests most people can get bad news about their risk of getting or transmitting breast cancer to a new generation without going all to pieces emotionally, Kazinform has learnt from CNN.
I think the study is weak. It involved only a few hundred people who already likely knew they were in a high risk group for breast cancer. It is likely that such people who seek testing will take bad news with greater calm than would you or I if we had no expectations.
t most, the study suggests that people in high risk groups who know they are likely to get a genetic disease can handle negative health information. But it doesn't tell us much about how the average person will cope in such a situation.
Remember that genetic testing is still in its infancy.
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