20
Ethical Questions
1. Are patients better off with no therapy
rather than suffer through that which is often costly
and only somewhat effective?
2. If genetic
screening reveals a chance for parents to pass on
mutant genes to a child, then should those parents go
ahead and have offspring?
3. Though DNA fingerprinting is enough to prove
someone innocent of a crime, should it be enough to
prove someone guilty?
4. Should the results of a person's genetic profile or
possible genetic disorders be revealed to the public?
5. Should doctor-patient confidentiality be put aside
when someone applies to a company for life insurance?
6. With the high
cost of health care, should patients be made to stay
in the hospital to properly screen for genetic
disorders?
7. If genetic screening shows that a fetus will be
born with cystic fibrosis or some other genetic
disorder, should it be aborted before birth or allowed
to live?
8. If a particular sex is predisposed to a genetic
disorder or disease, then should genetic screening be
used to decide if a fetus should be terminated so that
it cannot be a potential sufferer or carrier ?
9. Should a person at risk for a genetic disorder have
preventive surgery or take their chances without it?
10. Should people
be exposed to treatment for one genetic disorder
without doctors testing to see if a patient can
contract something else as a result of the treatment?
11. Should new genetic screening technology be
regulated by government or a world council rather than
the business community?
12. How will new
DNA Technology be made available to anyone other than
the upper class, as it can be very expensive?
13. Will the
mapping of genes on a genome come in time to really
benefit mankind, or should be begin to pursue other
avenues of research?
14. Is it fair to disclose info.about tests, their
purposes,
limitations, or possible outcomes before results are
given?
15. Is it right to require genetic testing for
employment?
16. As genetically impaired offspring are released
into society, it's likely that a good many of them
will grow and have more offspring themselves.
Therefore, is the general poplulace likely to see a
great deal more genetically impaired people in the
future?
17. Are all mutations detected by screening malignant?
18. Many genetic
advances in areas of genetic research are made with
the use of animal subjects. Is this the best and
safest form of research?
19. In this
country, African-Americans show a strong propensity to
develop the genetic disorder sickle cell anemia.
Should this be a basis for denying them health care
and other insurance benefits?
20. What is the
ultimate goal of this extensive DNA research and
genetic screening, and why is not a cure all panacea,
as some feel? |
Sources
and Examples
1. A recent survey for 351 diseases caused by single
gene mutations showed that the patient's lifespan was
improved by only 15%.
2. Ex. 9% of women who inherit one mutant copy of gene
BRCA1 have a 60% chance of having breast cancer by age
50, and an 82% chance of developing it by age 70. In
contrast, women who inherit 2 normal genes are 2% and
7%, respectively. Pg. 390 Life: The Science of
Biology.
3. Two people could have the same
DNA patterns, since what is being tested is just a
small sample of the genome. More than this is needed
to stand up in court. P. 370 Life: The Science of
Biology.
4. The many linkages of genetic abnormalities, from
manic depression to schizophrenia, has led to the
potential for screening and then social manipulation
of those at risk. P. 397 Life: The Science of Biology
5. People who test positive for genetic abnormalities,
from cancer to hypercholesterolemia, might be denied
employment or health insurance. P. 397 Life: The
Science of Biology.
6. Possibly. Ex. PKU may not show up for days in
infants, and many mothers leave the hospital early to
keep costs low. By the time the medical staff is able
to contact them, considerable brain damage may already
have been done. P. 384 Life: The Science of Biology
7. Babies born with cystic fibrosis, FH, etc. die in
their early 20's
and 30's. P. 376
8. Ex. It is known that hemophilia exists on the Y
chromosome, and therefore transmitted by females. If
genetic screening shows that a female fetus is a
carrier, should that baby be terminated so that the
disease won't spread to future generations?
9. Ex. A person who inherits mutated copies of the
tumor-suppressor genes involved in colon cancer
normally would have a high chance of developing this
tumor by age 40. Surgical removal of the colon would
prevent this from happening. P. 390 Life: The Science
of Biology.
10. Before doctors fully understood AIDS, many
hemophiliacs were given HIV-positive blood, and as a
result, they contracted the virus.
P. 392 Life: The Science of Biology.
11. The Affymetrix company is suing Incyte
Pharmaceutical Inc. and Synteni Inc. for patent
infringement, while also filing suit against Hyseq
company. With companies large and small fighting over
the DNA chip technology, it could be years
before the technology becomes available. Science
Magazine Online "Will Patent Fights Hold DNA
Chips Hostage?" www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/full/282/5388/397
12. Affymetrix chips run between $45.00 and $850.00,
not to mention fluidic stations, which can cost more
than $100,000.
www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/full/282/5388/397
13. The DNA of a molecule that is 50 million base
pairs long cannot be sequenced in that form; only 500
base pairs at a time can be sequenced. P. 394 Life:
The Science of Biology.
14. For info. see www.faseb.org/genetics/acmg/pol-17.htm
15. For info,
see
www.acoem
16.
Doubtful. Ex. PKU only affects 1 out of every 12,000
newborns. Polymorphism only affects about 1% of the
population, and even then it DOES NOT necessarily mean
disease. P. 375 Chapter 17 Life: The Science of
Biology.
17. No. Ex. Analysis of the phenylaline hydroxylase
protein in
different people often showed variations that have no
functional
signifigance, nor any harmful effects. P. 375 Chapter
17 Life: The Science of Biology.
18. Possibly. Ex. Research with animals lead to
advances with
recombinant DNA, which enabled researchers to develop
synthetic insulin for certain types of diabetes
patients. However, the process of purifying the
insulin was long and tedious, and some of the
patients' immune systems rejected the insulin proteins
violently.
19. No, because though blacks show a propensity to
develop sickle cell, it is still not a very common
occurrence. Only 1 in 655 will be affected by it. P.
376 Life: The Science of Biology Table 17.1.
20. We are
individuals, not clones. Each of us, though we share
many similarities, have different genetic makeups;
with all the
variables in one's life (enviornment, heredity, etc.)
there is no
accurate way to predict how vulnerable or how
resistant a person is to a myriad of genetic flaws or
imperfections. So the real motive for such extensive
research in genetics and DNA may be that, for all our
great advances and knowledge, we are still only left
with a few clues as to why God and nature have
conspired to make us so different, and in many way, so
very much the same. |
