SUPERIOR
‘The abiliTy To screen an embryo allows parenTs To choose The healThier cells before The child is born.’
2
The Practices & The Benefits
Reasons for its use:—Carrier screening, which involves identifying unaffected individuals who carry one copy of a gene for a disease that requires two copies for the disease to be expressed— Pre implantation genetic diagnosis — Prenatal diagnostic testing newborn screening— Pre symptomatic testing for predicting adult-onset disorders such as Huntington’s disease— Pre symptomatic testing for estimating the risk of developing adult-onset cancers and Alzheimer’s —Confirmed diagnosis of a symptomatic individual forensic/identity testing
Genetic engineering human lives, can potentially allow us to build superior humans, with added genes and removal of bad genes. Intelligence, appearance and medical histories will be predicted long before fertilization. Gene testing has already dramatically improved lives. Some tests are used to clarify a diagnosis and direct a physician toward appropriate treatments, while others allow families to avoid having children with devastating diseases or identify people at high risk for conditions that may be preventable.
Pre-Genetic Implantation Diagnosis (PGD) is a form of IVF (in vitro fertilization) but with an additional test to search for faulty genes in the created embryos. Once the embryos have grown to the 8-cell stage, one or two cells are removed and tested for the faulty gene. Embryos free of any mutations are implanted into the womb in the hope that one will grow into a healthy fetus, whilst faulty embryos are discarded.
The ability to screen several embryos for disease and gender is already available at a small fee of $15,000 (US). Further genetic technology is predicted to be in practice within 20-25 years. The costs of screenings are falling and the availability is rising, making it more accessible to lower income families.
The number of fertility treatments that include embryo screening has been on the rise in recent years, with nearly 5,200 screenings in 2006, according to the Society for Assisted Reproductive Technology. Carrier testing also is rising. A California company, Counsel, sells a $349 saliva test for genes for more than 100 inherited disorders. Several thousand people used it over the last year.
Genetic screening is the newest and most sophisticated of the techniques used to test for genetic disorders, involving the direct examination of the DNA molecule itself. The ability to screen an embryo allows parents to choose the healthier cells before the child is born. Genetic screens can also determine future developments of illnesses and disease within the DNA.
G e n e T i c s c r e e n i n G
Superior Human Development 3
‘The abiliTy To screen an embryo allows parenTs To choose The healThier cells before The child is born.’
2
The Practices & The Benefits
Reasons for its use:—Carrier screening, which involves identifying unaffected individuals who carry one copy of a gene for a disease that requires two copies for the disease to be expressed— Pre implantation genetic diagnosis — Prenatal diagnostic testing newborn screening— Pre symptomatic testing for predicting adult-onset disorders such as Huntington’s disease— Pre symptomatic testing for estimating the risk of developing adult-onset cancers and Alzheimer’s —Confirmed diagnosis of a symptomatic individual forensic/identity testing
Genetic engineering human lives, can potentially allow us to build superior humans, with added genes and removal of bad genes. Intelligence, appearance and medical histories will be predicted long before fertilization. Gene testing has already dramatically improved lives. Some tests are used to clarify a diagnosis and direct a physician toward appropriate treatments, while others allow families to avoid having children with devastating diseases or identify people at high risk for conditions that may be preventable.
Pre-Genetic Implantation Diagnosis (PGD) is a form of IVF (in vitro fertilization) but with an additional test to search for faulty genes in the created embryos. Once the embryos have grown to the 8-cell stage, one or two cells are removed and tested for the faulty gene. Embryos free of any mutations are implanted into the womb in the hope that one will grow into a healthy fetus, whilst faulty embryos are discarded.
The ability to screen several embryos for disease and gender is already available at a small fee of $15,000 (US). Further genetic technology is predicted to be in practice within 20-25 years. The costs of screenings are falling and the availability is rising, making it more accessible to lower income families.
The number of fertility treatments that include embryo screening has been on the rise in recent years, with nearly 5,200 screenings in 2006, according to the Society for Assisted Reproductive Technology. Carrier testing also is rising. A California company, Counsel, sells a $349 saliva test for genes for more than 100 inherited disorders. Several thousand people used it over the last year.
Genetic screening is the newest and most sophisticated of the techniques used to test for genetic disorders, involving the direct examination of the DNA molecule itself. The ability to screen an embryo allows parents to choose the healthier cells before the child is born. Genetic screens can also determine future developments of illnesses and disease within the DNA.
G e n e T i c s c r e e n i n G
Superior Human Development 3
‘GeneTic TechnoloGy will soon provide parenTs wiTh The abiliTy To choose specific Genes for Their children.’
‘The dawn of a new aGe is Upon Us. The abiliTy To have choice in The healTh for oUr children is jUsT The beGinninG Towards bUildinG a sUperior hUman beinGs.’
6
The Future Possibilities
h e a l T h i e r h U m a n l i f e
Genetic tests can prevent hereditary
diseases, reduce cancer percentages,
disabilities and deformities.
On the horizon is a gene test that will
provide doctors with a simple diagnostic
test for a common iron-storage disease,
transforming it from a usually fatal
condition to a treatable one. When prenatal
genetic testing reveals a disorder or
deformity,
parents often choose to abort. However,
parents can avoid such
a decision by using pre-implantation genetic
diagnosis (PGD). PGD allows couples that
are using artificial insemination to identify
genetic diseases such as cystic fibrosis and
hemophilia A before implantation, rather
than several months into a pregnancy.
This is especially useful when one or
both parents know they carry a genetic
variation associated with a disorder. More
recently, parents have begun using PGD
to look for signs of late-onset diseases and
cancer susceptibility. For example, certain
mutations in the BRCA1 gene confer high
risk for breast cancer. PDG can
be used to select embryos that do not have
the worrisome mutations.
In January 2009, a British mother gave
birth to a healthy baby girl having used this
process to ensure her child did not inherit
her breast cancer causing BRCA1 gene. The
birth was the first of its kind and has been
slammed by many disability and pro-life
organisations as unethical. If people can
afford to and if the technology is there then
if someone wants to change the baby and
make the baby less prone to the disease then
that is a positive.
Births of babies with cystic fibrosis
dropped, from 29 in 2000 to only 10 in
2003, ticking up to 15 in 2006, said Dr.
Richard Parad, a Brigham and Women’s
Hospital physician who helped set up the
screening program.
In California, Kaiser Permanente, a large
health maintenance organization, offered
prenatal screening. From 2006 through
2008, 87 couples with cystic fibrosis
mutations agreed to have fetuses tested,
and 23 were found to have the disease.
Sixteen of the 17 fetuses projected to have
the severest type of disease were aborted,
as were four of the six fetuses projected to
have less severe disease.
Superior Human Development 7
‘when prenaTal GeneTic TesTinG reveals a disorder of deformiTy parenTs ofTen choose To aborT.’
‘The dawn of a new aGe is Upon Us. The abiliTy To have choice in The healTh for oUr children is jUsT The beGinninG Towards bUildinG a sUperior hUman beinGs.’
6
The Future Possibilities
h e a l T h i e r h U m a n l i f e
Genetic tests can prevent hereditary
diseases, reduce cancer percentages,
disabilities and deformities.
On the horizon is a gene test that will
provide doctors with a simple diagnostic
test for a common iron-storage disease,
transforming it from a usually fatal
condition to a treatable one. When prenatal
genetic testing reveals a disorder or
deformity,
parents often choose to abort. However,
parents can avoid such
a decision by using pre-implantation genetic
diagnosis (PGD). PGD allows couples that
are using artificial insemination to identify
genetic diseases such as cystic fibrosis and
hemophilia A before implantation, rather
than several months into a pregnancy.
This is especially useful when one or
both parents know they carry a genetic
variation associated with a disorder. More
recently, parents have begun using PGD
to look for signs of late-onset diseases and
cancer susceptibility. For example, certain
mutations in the BRCA1 gene confer high
risk for breast cancer. PDG can
be used to select embryos that do not have
the worrisome mutations.
In January 2009, a British mother gave
birth to a healthy baby girl having used this
process to ensure her child did not inherit
her breast cancer causing BRCA1 gene. The
birth was the first of its kind and has been
slammed by many disability and pro-life
organisations as unethical. If people can
afford to and if the technology is there then
if someone wants to change the baby and
make the baby less prone to the disease then
that is a positive.
Births of babies with cystic fibrosis
dropped, from 29 in 2000 to only 10 in
2003, ticking up to 15 in 2006, said Dr.
Richard Parad, a Brigham and Women’s
Hospital physician who helped set up the
screening program.
In California, Kaiser Permanente, a large
health maintenance organization, offered
prenatal screening. From 2006 through
2008, 87 couples with cystic fibrosis
mutations agreed to have fetuses tested,
and 23 were found to have the disease.
Sixteen of the 17 fetuses projected to have
the severest type of disease were aborted,
as were four of the six fetuses projected to
have less severe disease.
Superior Human Development 7
‘when prenaTal GeneTic TesTinG reveals a disorder of deformiTy parenTs ofTen choose To aborT.’
‘we shoUld preserve The aUTonomy of paTienTs To make These very personal decisions.’
8
Your Choice.
s e X s e l e c T i o n
Genetic screening can predict the sex of
an unborn child. This gives parents a new
ability to choose their children. This is
particularly helpful for parents in societies
with gender preferences like China and
India. The technology could develop
further, allowing parents to have more
choice to which genes they want for their
child.
impromptu births of females. Reducing the
crime and death rates of woman in Asian
countries. “Less births, better births, to
develop China vigorously”
Perhaps girls still need a dowry, and
poor parents may find it difficult to save
enough and hence prefer a boy. Or perhaps
they prefer a boy because the law of their
country or tribe – inspired by age-old
prejudice – says that only boys can inherit
land or the family business. Again, the
parents may prefer a boy for this reason,
not because they dislike girls. Or perhaps
tradition holds that girls marry off into their
husbands families, and parents simply want
to be sure to have someone in their home to
care for them when they are old (“raising a
daughter is like watering your neighbour’s
garden”, is a Hindu saying).
It could be argued that the decrease
in women to men could in fact empower
women. The scarcity of wives will add more
value to the women of these countries.
“It’s the patient’s information, their
desire,” Dr. Richard Parad said. “Who are
we to decide, to play God? I’ve got news
for you; it’s not going to change the gender
balance in the world. We get a handful of
requests per year, and we’re doing it. It’s
always been a controversy, but I don’t think
it’s a big problem. We should preserve the
autonomy of patients to make these very
personal decisions.”
“We prefer to do it for family balancing,
but we’ve never turned away someone who
came in and said, ‘I want my first to be a
boy or a girl.’ If they all said a boy first,
we’d probably shy away, but it’s 50-50.”
The United Nations opposes sex
selection for non-medical reasons, and
a number of countries have outlawed it,
including Australia, Canada and Britain,
and other nations in Asia, South America
and Europe.
Left unanswered is the question of
whether societies, and families, that favor
boys should just be allowed to have them,
since attitudes are hard to change, and
girls born into such environments may
be abused. In this instance prenatal sex
selection is a positive thing.
The one child policy in China, many
families prefer male children for the
financial working benefits. Men’s income
is 20% higher than a woman’s, and they
are more likely to be given an inheritance.
Genetic screenings can help prevent the
‘we prefer To do iT for family balancinG, bUT we’ve never TUrned away someone who came in and said, ‘i wanT my firsT To be a boy or a Girl.’ if They all said a boy firsT, we’d probably shy away, bUT iT’s 50-50.’
‘raisinG a daUGhTer is like waTerinG yoUr neiGhboUr’s Garden.’
Superior Human Development 9
10 Superior Human Development 11
Genetic testing has potential benefits
whether the results are positive or negative
for a gene mutation. Test results can
provide a sense of relief from uncertainty
and help people make informed decisions
about managing their health care.
The benefits of genetic screening are that the results can be used for many purposes. In the case of prenatal testing a diagnosis can be made on a suspect fetus that will allow ample time for decision to be made about treatment. Unfortunate as it is, abortion is the right answer in severe cases. Results from genetic tests can also help predetermine the carrier status of couples planning parenthood. With the information from genetic tests a couple can decide if the risk of having a child with a certain genetic makeup outweigh the advantages. In some cases changing habits can help slow down a disease. With prior knowledge of their genetic status some may change their lifestyle and therefor increase their life span.
Further advances in genetic testing will eventually replace older methods of predicting prognosis, helping to treat only those patients who will
respond to therapy and by helping to guide further research into these therapies. Recent advances are also helping to increase our understanding of some complex cancers, such as multiple myeloma and lymphoma.
With specialized techniques, gene expression can be manipulated to correct the problem in the particular patient, although the correction will not be passed along to offspring of that patient. That is, corrections are made at the DNA molecule level to compensate for the abnormal gene so that the detrimental symptoms of the disease are not expressed in the patient. It is still highly experimental. Clinical trials are being conducted to see if this can be used to develop treatments for other diseases, including cancer, heart disease, and AIDS.
Without a doubt, there will be more and more advances in genetic research that will impact the laboratory tests available to all patients for detection and treatment of a variety of diseases.
‘GeneTic screeninG will prevenT parenTs from havinG children wiTh common GeneTic defecTs.’
10 Superior Human Development 11
Genetic testing has potential benefits
whether the results are positive or negative
for a gene mutation. Test results can
provide a sense of relief from uncertainty
and help people make informed decisions
about managing their health care.
The benefits of genetic screening are that the results can be used for many purposes. In the case of prenatal testing a diagnosis can be made on a suspect fetus that will allow ample time for decision to be made about treatment. Unfortunate as it is, abortion is the right answer in severe cases. Results from genetic tests can also help predetermine the carrier status of couples planning parenthood. With the information from genetic tests a couple can decide if the risk of having a child with a certain genetic makeup outweigh the advantages. In some cases changing habits can help slow down a disease. With prior knowledge of their genetic status some may change their lifestyle and therefor increase their life span.
Further advances in genetic testing will eventually replace older methods of predicting prognosis, helping to treat only those patients who will
respond to therapy and by helping to guide further research into these therapies. Recent advances are also helping to increase our understanding of some complex cancers, such as multiple myeloma and lymphoma.
With specialized techniques, gene expression can be manipulated to correct the problem in the particular patient, although the correction will not be passed along to offspring of that patient. That is, corrections are made at the DNA molecule level to compensate for the abnormal gene so that the detrimental symptoms of the disease are not expressed in the patient. It is still highly experimental. Clinical trials are being conducted to see if this can be used to develop treatments for other diseases, including cancer, heart disease, and AIDS.
Without a doubt, there will be more and more advances in genetic research that will impact the laboratory tests available to all patients for detection and treatment of a variety of diseases.
‘GeneTic screeninG will prevenT parenTs from havinG children wiTh common GeneTic defecTs.’
INFERIOR