Fresh Territory for Bioethics: Silicon Valley

Biomedical researchers are increasingly looking to Silicon Valley for access to human subjects, and Silicon Valley is looking to biomedical researchers for new ventures. These relationships could be a boon to medicine, but they also raise questions about how well-informed the consent process is and how securely the privacy of the subjects’ identity and data is kept. Other than a few quotes in the popular press, bioethicists have had little to say on the topic, although those whom I have spoken with agree that more attention is warranted. And so, in the current issue of the Hastings Center Report, I invited readers to write commentaries for Bioethics Forum.

Since the journal went to press, more has happened, adding to the case for examining how social media and technology companies are changing the way human subjects research, and especially genetic research, are conducted.  The latest news has been about 23andMe, the consumer genetic testing company supported by Google, and about Google itself.

This month, 23andme raised $115 million to be used to expand its consumer genetic testing...