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Societal Aspects: Ethics

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Circulating Nucleic Acids in Early Diagnosis, Prognosis and Treatment Monitoring

Part of the book series: Advances in Predictive, Preventive and Personalised Medicine ((APPPM,volume 5))

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Abstract

Non-invasive techniques to diagnose genetic disease have advanced rapidly in recent years and include prenatal diagnosis for fetal aneuploidy and single gene disorders, and early screening and diagnosis for people affected by cancer and diabetes. In this chapter we consider some of the key ethical issues arising as a result of this new technology. We highlight how non-invasive testing offers a number of significant benefits to patients including safe and early testing. Issues that have been raised as concerns include the erosion of informed decision-making, pressure to test, testing for non-medical reasons or for information only and the broader societal impact that the widespread introduction of non-invasive testing may have. These are issues that should be considered when developing practice guidelines.

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Acknowledgements

Part of the work presented here was funded by the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) Programme Grants for Applied Research (RP-PG-0707–10107). LSC is partially funded by the Great Ormond Street Hospital Children’s Charity; the NIHR comprehensive Biomedical Research Centre at University College London Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust and University College London. The funders have had no role in any aspect of study design, collection, analysis or interpretation, or in the writing of the report and decision to submit for publication. The research funded is independent, and the views expressed in the article are those of the authors and not necessarily those of the NHS, the NIHR or the Department of Health.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. UCL Institute of Child Health and Great Ormond Street Hospital for Children NHS Trust, London, UK

    Celine Lewis

  2. Genetics and Genomic Medicine Programme, UCL Institute of Child Health and Great Ormond Street Hospital for Children NHS Trust, London, UK

    Lyn S. Chitty

  3. Fetal Medicine Unit, University College London Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, London, UK

    Lyn S. Chitty

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  1. Celine Lewis
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  2. Lyn S. Chitty
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Correspondence to Lyn S. Chitty .

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  1. Anatomy & Human Sciences, King's College London, London, United Kingdom

    Peter B. Gahan

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Lewis, C., Chitty, L.S. (2015). Societal Aspects: Ethics. In: Gahan, P. (eds) Circulating Nucleic Acids in Early Diagnosis, Prognosis and Treatment Monitoring. Advances in Predictive, Preventive and Personalised Medicine, vol 5. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-017-9168-7_14

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-017-9168-7_14

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