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The Impact of Test Outcome Certainty on Interest in Genetic Testing Among College Women

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Journal of Genetic Counseling

Abstract

Osteoporosis and hemochromatosis are both late-onset preventable diseases, but future genetic tests for these conditions are likely to differ in their predictive abilities. To determine whether interest in a specific genetic test for hemochromatosis would be higher than interest in a theoretical test for osteoporosis susceptibility, undergraduate women at the University of Cincinnati (N = 181) were surveyed regarding their interest in genetic testing for these conditions. The clinical features of the diseases and the limits of a genetic test for each were described. Sixty-three percent of the total population was interested in genetic testing with a trend toward higher interest in the osteoporosis group. Disease familiarity, perceived disease severity, and perceived risk for disease appear to be more important predictors of genetic test acceptance than diagnostic specificity. Suggested implications for the development of population genetic screening tests are discussed.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. University of Cincinnati Genetic Counseling Graduate Program, Cincinnati, Ohio

    Lisa M. Paglierani

  2. Division of General and Community Pediatrics, Children's Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, Ohio

    Heidi J. Kalkwarf

  3. Division of Adolescent and Behavioral Health, UTMB Children's Hospital, Galveston, Texas

    Susan L. Rosenthal

  4. Department of Biology, University of Cincinnati, Cincinnati, Ohio

    Carl A. Huether

  5. Children's Hospital Research Foundation, Cincinnati, Ohio

    Richard J. Wenstrup

Authors
  1. Lisa M. Paglierani
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  2. Heidi J. Kalkwarf
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  3. Susan L. Rosenthal
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  4. Carl A. Huether
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  5. Richard J. Wenstrup
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Correspondence to Richard J. Wenstrup.

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Paglierani, L.M., Kalkwarf, H.J., Rosenthal, S.L. et al. The Impact of Test Outcome Certainty on Interest in Genetic Testing Among College Women. Journal of Genetic Counseling 12, 131–150 (2003). https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1022607223097

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