The number of available genetic tests for diseases has passed 800 and is continuously growing. Governments have supported the world-wide genome project with substantial sums, without seriously considering the moral and legal implications of this new understanding when applied to patient care. Originally confined to rare disorders, testing can now identify many "common" diseases and the outlook is overwhelming: because most disorders have multiple genetic and environmental causes, the majority of tests only determines levels of risk (with all the statistical flaws inherent to such interpretation). Ethical complications are becoming evident: do people really want to know their fate (and that of their relatives)? What if there is no cure for the disease, which may or may not strike? Is more information always helpful and is it for the benefit of the patient?
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