Genetic Testing

An article from Technology Review entitled "New Test Screens Prospective Parents for 100-Plus Diseases" by Emily Singer talks about a new genetic test developed by the company Counsyl. This specific device tests potential parents' genes for any diseases that they could pass on to their children. There have been many other genetic tests available, but this one is different because it tests for 100 different diseases while only costing $349. This same amount was equivalent to the cost of one cystic fibrosis test in the 1990s. Although this technology doesn't test for any new disease, it does test for many at the same time which is a great advancement.

You may ask why it's necessary to test for rare diseases in parents. The answer is that many people carry one copy of the mutation for a specific disease in their DNA, but this does not affect them in any way because humans need two copies in order to develop the disease. So if two people trying to conceive each have one single copy, then their child would have a twenty-five percent chance of receiving those genes and ultimately developing the disease.

The way this device works is that a probe catches small, specific pieces of DNA from the parents and examines them with great accuracy. Counsyl is hoping to start using a new technology called gene sequencing technology. This will actually allow the device to read every single letter of the specific genes in the DNA for a disease which will create even greater accuracy.

The topic of genetic testing is controversial because some people believe whatever child they create is the child they were supposed to have. They think that by using genetic testing, it's almost like cheating; it's as if you're creating the "perfect child". But I believe these technologies are great as they can assure a newborn's health. It can cost thousands of millions of dollars to take care of a sick child or even worse have your child die at a young age. I think that if we can prevent sickness then we should definitely use every tool we have to do so.

I also think that it's important to get the news out that there are new technologies developing all the time which are more and more useful to everyday people. For example, years ago only a wealthy person could purchase a genetic test, but since the cost has dropped so much, it's available to more and more people. This will make our world a healthier place, and hopefully one day we'll be able to eliminate these terrible diseases all together.