Attitudes and expectations in non-invasive prenatal genetic diagnosis (NIPD).
Location: Seminar Room, 4th Floor Claremont Bridge Building, Newcastle University, NE1 7RU
Time/Date: 21st March 2012, 13:00 - 14:00
Small amounts of foetal DNA present in circulating maternal blood were first reported by Professor Dennis Lo in 1997. This discovery suggested a potential method for assessing the genetic status of the foetus without the limitations of current prenatal genetic testing techniques, such as amniocentesis, which carry a relatively high risk of miscarriage. Novel technologies based on this free foetal DNA and promising easier, less invasive, safer and earlier detection of single gene disorders and chromosomal abnormalities are currently poised to move from research into routine clinical practice for the first time. One of the first widespread medical applications of this technology to be rolled out in the UK is likely to be the detection of Trisomy 21 (Down Syndrome). While non-invasive prenatal diagnostic (NIPD) technologies for T21 are being framed in familiar rhetorics of improved choice and safety for pregnant women, they also raise significant ethical questions about genetic discrimination and the systemic undervaluing of ‘disabled’ lives. Critical assessment of both the promises and problems of NIPD in T21 require understanding of a range of elements from public attitudes on prenatal genetic testing to healthcare professionals’ expectations about the utility and implementation of how any new testing regime will be implemented in practice. In this seminar I will present details of ongoing work on NIPD (particularly in relation to T21), including key findings to date, being carried out by the Healthcare Technology and Society research group at the University of Exeter.
Dr Michael Morrison (Egenis, University of Exeter)
This seminar is free and open to all.
PLEASE NOTE: The seminar previously advertised for this date with Marsha Rosengarten has been cancelled.
Published: 2nd November 2011