WP: Human Embryos in Britain May Be Screened for Cancer Risk

[kskiska]

British regulators yesterday ruled that fertility clinics may screen out human embryos carrying genes that raise the risk of cancer in adulthood -- a move the government said could prevent future suffering but that others said was proof that the age of handpicked, "designer" babies is at hand.

The Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority, which oversees tests involving human embryos in Britain, had previously allowed the use of genetic tests only to eliminate "test tube" embryos bearing genes for fatal childhood diseases.

The new decision expands that policy to include some genes that significantly increase the odds -- but do not guarantee -- that a person will get cancer. The policy also for the first time includes diseases -- primarily breast, ovarian and colon cancer -- that do not strike until adulthood and often respond to treatment.

Similar embryo screening tests have been used in the United States for years. But because they are not regulated or tracked, no one knows how often they are performed or the full range of conditions being screened for.

more…
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/05/10/AR2006051001811.html

[OneBlueSky]

1. this may be the most disturbing article I've read in a long time . . .

when we start screening embryos for defects -- or, worse, potential defects -- we're really devolving . . .

babies are not -- and must never become -- like items on a Wal-Mart shelf . . . where you can pick and choose the ones you like . . .

[depakid]

2. Consider the source

and the attributions:

"...Some experts fear that"

Here's a better one that discusses the issues more intelligently and without the blatant slant:

http://news.independent.co.uk/uk/health_medical/article363406.ece