Experiencing new forms of genetic choice: findings from an ethnographic study of preimplantation genetic diagnosis.

نویسندگان

  • Celia Roberts
  • Sarah Franklin
چکیده

Contemporary scientific and clinical knowledges and practices continue to make available new forms of genetic information, and to create new forms of reproductive choice. For example, couples at high risk of passing on a serious genetic condition to their offspring in Britain today have the opportunity to use Preimplantation Genetic Diagnosis (PGD) to select embryos that are unaffected by serious genetic disease. This information assists these couples in making reproductive choices. This article presents an analysis of patients' experiences of making the decision to undertake PGD treatment and of making reproductive choices based on genetic information. We present qualitative interview data from an ethnographic study of PGD based in two British clinics which indicate how these new forms of genetic choice are experienced by patients. Our data suggest that PGD patients make decisions about treatment in a complex way, taking multiple variables into account, and maintaining ongoing assessments of the multiple costs of engaging with PGD. Patients are aware of broader implications of their decisions, at personal, familial, and societal levels, as well as clinical ones. Based on these findings we argue that the ethical and social aspects of PGD are often as innovative as the scientific and medical aspects of this technique, and that in this sense, science cannot be described as "racing ahead" of society.

برای دانلود رایگان متن کامل این مقاله و بیش از 32 میلیون مقاله دیگر ابتدا ثبت نام کنید

ثبت نام

اگر عضو سایت هستید لطفا وارد حساب کاربری خود شوید

منابع مشابه

I-36: Preimplantation Genetic Diagnosis - Where Have We Been and Where Are We Going

Preimplantation genetic diagnosis (PGD) is now considered routine in IVF laboratories with micromanipulation capability and access to genetic diagnostic services. The past two decades have witnessed a dramatic increase in the use of PGD, the number of cycles performed, and the indications for which PGD has been used. This increase has been mirrored by a slow, but steady, increase in the range o...

متن کامل

O-27: Preimplantation Genetic Diagnosis in Prevention of Genetic Diseases -Diagnostic of Spinal Muscular Atrophy (SMA)

Background: Preimplantation genetic diagnosis - PGD is currently an established procedure allowing genetic research of oocyte or embryo before implantation to the uterus. Spinal muscular atrophy (SMA) is a neurodegenerative disorder, being the second most common lethal autosomal recessive disease in Caucasians, after cystic fibrosis. There are three clinically different types of which type I (W...

متن کامل

O-36: Genome Haplotyping and Detection of Meiotic Homologous Recombination Sites in Single Cells, A Generic Method for Preimplantation Genetic Diagnosis

Background: Haplotyping is invaluable not only to identify genetic variants underlying a disease or trait, but also to study evolution and population history as well as meiotic and mitotic recombination processes. Current genome-wide haplotyping methods rely on genomic DNA that is extracted from a large number of cells. Thus far random allele drop out and preferential amplification artifacts of...

متن کامل

O-16: Genetic Counseling and Necessity of Psychological Counseling Skills

Individuals who are at risk because of their family history or concerned about the possibility of having an affected child based any reasons are seeking solution approaches. Nowadays genetic counseling offers hope to prevent from suffering some genetic diseases. Advances in genetics diagnosis testing have played effective role in this regards. Interestingly, Preimplantation Genetic Testing woul...

متن کامل

ذخیره در منابع من


  با ذخیره ی این منبع در منابع من، دسترسی به آن را برای استفاده های بعدی آسان تر کنید

عنوان ژورنال:
  • Human fertility

دوره 7 4  شماره 

صفحات  -

تاریخ انتشار 2004