Abstract
The first human genome project, completed in 2003, uncovered the genetic building blocks of humankind. Painstakingly cataloguing the basic constituents of our DNA ('genome sequencing') took ten years, over three billion dollars and was a multinational collaboration. Since then, our ability to sequence genomes has been finessed so much that by 2017 it is possible to explore the 20,000 or so human genes for under £1000, in a matter of days. Such testing offers clues to our past, present and future health, as well as information about how we respond to medications so that truly 'personalised medicine' is now a reality. The impact of such a 'genomic era' is likely to have some level of impact on all of us, even if we are not directly using healthcare services ourselves. We explore how advancements in genetics are likely to be experienced by people, as patients, consumers and citizens; and urge policy makers to take stock of the pervasive nature of the technology as well as the human response to it.
Highlights
Genomic technology is being utilised in more settings across society than ever before, including medicine, population health screening, recreational consumerism, through to policing and crime prevention
People as citizens So far, we have explored the implications of genetics for us as patients and consumers
The implications have been explored in relation to the experience people have in three contexts, as patients, consumers and citizens
Summary
Genomic technology is being utilised in more settings across society than ever before, including medicine, population health screening, recreational consumerism (ancestry testing, nutritional testing), through to policing and crime prevention. Given the ability to look at multiple genes within one test, genomic technologies deliver an opportunity to serendipitously explore genes unrelated to the health condition being explored This means that when a patient has their cancer genes looked at it would be possible, at the same time, to explore their genes linked to heart disease. Genomic testing is increasingly being used to guide treatment options and provide more individualised risk assessments, often called ‘precision’ or ‘personalised’ medicine[13] This allows clinicians and genetic counsellors to explore predispositions to developing future disease, thereby enabling steps for prevention, screening and/or management to be taken. Implicit judgments are made about what is a worthwhile life, with genetic screening programmes having the potential to increase discrimination of people with disabilities[43]
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