23andMe Only Heightens the Need for Genetic Counselling
By Dr Joyce Harper,
BioNews
| 02. 02. 2015
Untitled Document
Partially out of curiosity and partially as an assignment for Radio 4's PM show, I was one of the first to 'get to know me', as their company slogan goes, and have my
genome analysed by
23andMe.
23andMe offer direct-to-consumer DNA analysis. Customers order a collection kit over the internet - essentially a tube you spit into and return to the company. About six weeks later the results arrive by email. At no point is there any involvement from a physician or genetic counsellor to explain what is being tested for or the consequences of the results.
Read more...
Related Articles
By Josie Ensor, The Times | 12.09.2025
A fertility start-up that promises to screen embryos to give would-be parents their “best baby” has come under fire for a “misuse of science”.
Nucleus Genomics describes its mission as “IVF for genetic optimisation”, offering advanced embryo testing that allows...
By Hannah Devlin, The Guardian | 12.06.2025
Couples undergoing IVF in the UK are exploiting an apparent legal loophole to rank their embryos based on genetic predictions of IQ, height and health, the Guardian has learned.
The controversial screening technique, which scores embryos based on their DNA...
By Frankie Fattorini, Pharmaceutical Technology | 12.02.2025
Próspera, a charter city on Roatán island in Honduras, hosts two biotechs working to combat ageing through gene therapy, as the organisation behind the city advertises its “flexible” regulatory jurisdiction to attract more developers.
In 2021, Minicircle set up a...
By Vardit Ravitsky, The Hastings Center | 12.04.2025
Embryo testing is advancing fast—but how far is too far? How and where do we draw the line between preventing disease and selecting for “desirable” traits? What are the ethical implications for parents, children, clinicians, and society at large? These...