Ethical issues in genetics

Genetic disorders are caused by abnormalities in genes and chromosomes and for the most part have implications for family members, affecting such matters as confidentiality and disclosure to third parties. Genetic testing can be not only diagnostic but also predictive, raising issues of the need for pre-test counselling, protection of children from unwanted testing, and most importantly, the imprecision of interpretation of future risk. The rise in availability of direct-to-consumer testing is a fresh cause for concern, as are the new possibilities in reproductive medicine. New technologies and the falling cost of whole genome sequencing ensure that ethics will be a prominent concern for clinical genetics.