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Dr. Shapiro completed his undergraduate education at UC San Diego, earning a B.S. in Biochemistry and Cell Biology, and a B.A. in Political Science. He furthered his education at UCLA where he earned a Masters Degree in Public…
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New Test For Safer Detection Of Down Syndrome Could Become An Ethical Dilemma
A new Down syndrome blood test has recently been released that will allow parents to detect whether or not their baby will have Down syndrome more safely in the pregnancy, without the risk of miscarriage.
Although its arrival should not come as much surprise, a new Down syndrome blood test will certainly raise ethical concerns surrounding the use of advancing technology in medicine. Because when it’s all said and done, the crux of the matter rests on the moral question: if the baby tests positive for Down syndrome, what will parents do with these results?
Now the researchers from China who created this safe and relatively noninvasive test say they want to provide future parents with accurate and timely information. But what does that really imply? Certainly, having this test available will allow parents to prepare for a child with Down syndrome which, based on my own professional experience, is a good thing. Again, the nice thing about this test, in comparison to amniocentesis and chorionic villus sampling (CVS), is the relative ease in performing the test. There are no risks of miscarriage (which occur about 1 in every 200 cases of both amniocentesis and CVS testing) or infection or amniotic fluid issues.
But as mentioned above, while this blood test will make it safer for mothers to determine if their child has Down syndrome, with more knowledge, many more women/parents would be faced with the decision of what to do with the pregnancy... either to continue or terminate.
Now, I am not here to judge how someone would interpret and proceed with the information provided with the testing, but I do think that this is just the tip of the iceberg of what is to follow. Advancing technology will eventually lead to the design of other tests determining other potential medical or physical conditions resulting in very difficult decision making. So where do we draw the line? Or, in fact, have we already crossed it?
Dr. Jeremy
Although its arrival should not come as much surprise, a new Down syndrome blood test will certainly raise ethical concerns surrounding the use of advancing technology in medicine. Because when it’s all said and done, the crux of the matter rests on the moral question: if the baby tests positive for Down syndrome, what will parents do with these results?
Now the researchers from China who created this safe and relatively noninvasive test say they want to provide future parents with accurate and timely information. But what does that really imply? Certainly, having this test available will allow parents to prepare for a child with Down syndrome which, based on my own professional experience, is a good thing. Again, the nice thing about this test, in comparison to amniocentesis and chorionic villus sampling (CVS), is the relative ease in performing the test. There are no risks of miscarriage (which occur about 1 in every 200 cases of both amniocentesis and CVS testing) or infection or amniotic fluid issues.
But as mentioned above, while this blood test will make it safer for mothers to determine if their child has Down syndrome, with more knowledge, many more women/parents would be faced with the decision of what to do with the pregnancy... either to continue or terminate.
Now, I am not here to judge how someone would interpret and proceed with the information provided with the testing, but I do think that this is just the tip of the iceberg of what is to follow. Advancing technology will eventually lead to the design of other tests determining other potential medical or physical conditions resulting in very difficult decision making. So where do we draw the line? Or, in fact, have we already crossed it?
Dr. Jeremy
RELATED POSTS
i got the results back to my blood work today and the down syndrome test came back positive...I'm trying really hard not to get so worked up about it but it's really hard....I'm just kinda lost and I'm trying to weigh out the risk of the amniocentesis tes
Posted on 03/11/10 09:51:29 pm
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Alport Syndrome
(7 Discussion Topics)
(7 Discussion Topics)
Androgen Insensitivity Syndrome
(4 Discussion Topics)
(4 Discussion Topics)
Antiphospholipid Syndrome
(198 Discussion Topics)
(198 Discussion Topics)
Apert Syndrome
(0 Discussion Topics)
(0 Discussion Topics)
Asperger Syndrome
(2,325 Discussion Topics)
(2,325 Discussion Topics)
Autism / Autism Spectrum
(5,140 Discussion Topics)
(5,140 Discussion Topics)
Carcinoid Syndrome
(50 Discussion Topics)
(50 Discussion Topics)
Down Syndrome
(453 Discussion Topics)
(453 Discussion Topics)
Fetal Alcohol Syndrome
(60 Discussion Topics)
(60 Discussion Topics)
Medicaid
(54 Discussion Topics)
(54 Discussion Topics)
Medical Mysteries
(157 Discussion Topics)
(157 Discussion Topics)
Medical Research and Clinical Trials
(128 Discussion Topics)
(128 Discussion Topics)
Medicare
(69 Discussion Topics)
(69 Discussion Topics)
Mental Challenged
(77 Discussion Topics)
(77 Discussion Topics)
Miscarriage
(10,544 Discussion Topics)
(10,544 Discussion Topics)
Pregnancy
(10,654 Discussion Topics)
(10,654 Discussion Topics)
Pregnancy - Teens
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(1,422 Discussion Topics)
Pregnancy After Loss/Infertility
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(7,177 Discussion Topics)
Trying To Conceive
(3,171 Discussion Topics)
(3,171 Discussion Topics)
Turner Syndrome
(266 Discussion Topics)
(266 Discussion Topics)
Twins, Triplets & More
(1,495 Discussion Topics)
(1,495 Discussion Topics)
That's just my personal opinion and I believe everyone has that right so I wouldn't go around telling people it's what they should do since I don't want done to me. It really does pose a major ethical question but the upside is if you do plan to keep a child that you know will have any kind of handicap, it would give the parent more time to prepare their home and heart.
Not everyone is capable of coping with and managing the life of a special needs child. Some people know this about themselves. If a test result early in pregnancy indicates genetic abnormality, and they feel certain they cannot handle that, I don't believe they should be forced to proceed with the pregnancy. I definitely value life. But I do not believe in valuing life over quality of life.
There are ethical implications to all kinds of tests, and no simple answers. What’s acceptable for one family is not to another; there's not always a clear right and wrong. I hope these sort of medical advances continue, both with some degree of restriction, and some degree of freedom of
choice for families faced with tough decisions.
Thank you for sharing the topic!