Breast Cancer Genes and Patient Protection in an Era of Personalized Medicine
By Karuna Jaggar,
Huffington Post
| 03. 20. 2014
Genetic testing is often heralded as a cornerstone in an imminent and exciting new age of personalized medicine, in which our health care is customized based on our individual genetic profiles. But let's not get carried away by the fantasy and promise; progress has lagged while persistent medical, ethical and scientific issues associated with genetic testing abound.
Last week, we witnessed a major step toward reigning in what has, until last year, been a veritable Wild West of genetic testing. On Monday, a U.S. District Court Judge in Utah decided that Myriad Genetics could not stop a competitor (Ambry Genetics) from offering commercial BRCA ("breast cancer gene") testing as their current legal suit winds through the courts. (Full disclosure: Breast Cancer Action filed an amicus brief in opposition to Myriad's request for an injunction, along with the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), Public Patent Foundation (PUBPAT), Association for Molecular Pathology (AMP), and the AARP, each of which was also involved in a multi-year lawsuit cited below which challenged Myriad's patent claims on the two BRCA genes.)
This somewhat esoteric legal...
Related Articles
A Review of Exposed by Becky McClain
“Do not get lost in a sea of despair. Be hopeful, be optimistic. Our struggle is not the struggle of a day, a week, a month, or a year, it is the struggle of a lifetime. Never, ever be afraid to make some noise and get in good trouble, necessary trouble.”
— John Lewis
Becky McClain became famous when she successfully sued Pfizer, one of the very largest pharmaceutical and biotech companies. She...
By Katherine Long, Ben Foldy, and Lingling Wei, The Wall Street Journal | 12.13.2025
Inside a closed Los Angeles courtroom, something wasn’t right.
Clerks working for family court Judge Amy Pellman were reviewing routine surrogacy petitions when they spotted an unusual pattern: the same name, again and again.
A Chinese billionaire was seeking parental...
By Sarah Kliff, The New York Times | 12.10.2025
Micah Nerio had known since his early 30s that he wanted to be a father, even if he did not have a partner. He spent a decade saving up to pursue surrogacy, an expensive process where he would create embryos...
By Carter Sherman, The Guardian | 12.08.2025
A huge defense policy bill, revealed by US lawmakers on Sunday, does not include a provision that would have provided broad healthcare coverage for in vitro fertilization (IVF) for active-duty members of the military, despite Donald Trump’s pledge...
