Pros And Cons Of Genetic Research

   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

The view over genetic testing starts with establishing necessary definitions and discussing its purpose in our world. To start off, the human body is a complex multicellular system. Every cell in the body is comprised of the same DNA (with some exceptions), which stores our genes. These genes are the set of instructions that encode the proteins necessary to create and maintain the human body. The issue is that some genes can undergo a variety of mutations during development that cause an array of complications or disease. Gene therapy can modify the designated abnormal genes to reach normalcy, while genetic engineering focuses on enhancement and surpassing what is normal. However, the goal of genetic testing is to identify the abnormalities

It is patients’ right to opt for genetic testing on their own DNA, although they are accepting a great risk by doing so.

As you can see genetic testing is very important and can affect a child's and parents lives for the better and the worst. Children all over the world have serious genetic diseases that affect their life on a daily. Some of these diseases are Achondroplasia, Down syndrome, and Turner's syndrome. Many believe genetic testing is a good way to test for these genetic conditions before the child is even born, but others think that it can harm the baby very badly and even cause a miscarriage, so they choose not to do this kind of testing. Knowing about the most serious genetic diseases is very important for expecting parents to be informed as well as being

The benefit of genetic science for individuals is that it can determine if the person has a possible genetic disorder and give them

Genetic testing identifies changes in ones genes and chromosomes. These changes often lead to diagnoses of conditions, disorders, or diseases. Through testing, “one can confirm or rule out a suspected genetic condition or help determine a person’s chance of developing or

There are two main ways genetic testing places a constraint on a child’s right to an open future. The first of these is that the revelation of a child’s disease status can change his life narrative and the way parents and others treat him, and substantially alter his or her life’s trajectory (Davis _____). Parents may feel guilty or shelter their not-yet-sick

Knowledge of the human genome, and an increase in the availability of genetic testing at lower cost has made genetic testing more popular.

Although the gene chip will enable an individual to know whether he/she has a genetic disease, that person may not want to know the information. Many people are frightened that a positive finding on a genetic test will result in discrimination and ostracism because the society will consider them abnormal (Easthope 2005). The other concern is that with genetic test information one might lose or might be unable to get a job or insurance. There have been concerns that with the knowledge of one’s medical information after a gene test, he/she might suffer a psychological problem especially when the results reveal that one suffers from a terminal disease or has high possibility of suffering from one (Willis 2009).

With so many advances in medical technology, ethical dilemmas often accompany the advances. Genetic testing continue to be one of the most heated ethical debate in today’s health care. In 1963, newborns began to be tested for phenylketonuria (PKU), an amino acid buildup in the blood that causes mental retardation. This is the earliest genetic testing documented in the health care of the United States. Today, more than 2,500 available genetic testing are available to the public where the lowest cost reported is a DNA home kit for one hundred dollars. In 2013, the famous actress, Angelina Jolie, undergone a preventive double mastectomy after the BRCA genetic tests that revealed she was at a high

Genetic testing is becoming more common as different types of genetic tests become available to the public. There are diagnostic tests, predictive tests, carrier tests and prenatal tests just to name a few. However, there are many ethical and social issues revolving around genetic testing. There are ethical issues involving the limitations of testing, the restriction of treatments available and the unknown implications of early prevention. There are also the social issues of potential for discrimination and the emotional impact of the test results.

Genetic screening is the testing of variations in gene sequences in protein or DNA. Protein screening is easier, but DNA screening is more powerful. It is a 'physical screening for a protein or genetic abnormality that may allow detection of a disorder before there are physical signs of it, or even before a gene is expressed if it acts later in life.' (web). This is a technique that is used on nonhuman species such as plants and some animals and is not questioned. The real question is if we should use it on humans.

genetic testing, everything has changed. She notes that clinicians now have the ability to diagnose, treat, and monitor a patient’s illnesses or disease progression in an entirely different manner. This is a far cry from the old medical model of responding to a disease (or defect) only after it appears, and then prescribing the recommended medication or intervention. These genetic medical advances sound miraculous and promising, but the ability to test, screen and provide early intervention does not come without many major ethical dilemmas.

For example, the co-founder of Google, Sergey Brin, was genetically tested for Parkinson’s disease. Although he currently does not show any signs of having the disease physically, he could develop it in the future because it does not usually show until a person’s age of 50 or 60. He had this genetic test done because his mother has Parkinson’s disease. Through this genetic test, he discovered that he does carry the mutation for Parkinson’s disease which makes him more vulnerable to have it in the future (Helft, 2008). There has not been much hype about people using genetic testing for reasons like Sergey Brin. He was able to walk away from the genetic test know that he is a carrier for the mutation. Although this may be upsetting for him, now he can take steps to prevent himself from developing the disease in the future since there is not yet a cure. If he would not have been genetically tested, he may have never known that he is a carrier for the mutation and possibly could have never taken the steps for prevention which may have given him a larger chance of developing Parkinson’s disease in the future. Another reason that people get tested is to investigate their chances of conceiving a child. There is no harm being done to anyone if they want their genome tested. Genetic testing is mainly used to give people an insight of what to expect in the future.

Genetic testing can provide types of selected information, such as a sickness, different types of DNA, family heritage, and more. Recently, parents have been struggling to make the decision of whether it would be better for children to make their own decisions on when they take the tests, or if they should make the decisions for the kids. Researchers have suggested to let kids make their own decisions because kids may find that they are not related to their ‘family’, even adults have a struggle with taking the fact of their child having a disease, and children should not have to go through the worry of something that isn’t healthy.