An argument about the right to know between physicians and politicians has been raging ever since the capacity of genetic testing has evolved to be able to determine the potential that genes will develop an unwanted or deadly disease. The argument has centered on whether to tell people that are between 12 and 18 years of age the results of their genetic testing. One of the few inquiries that polled the opinion of teens was presented by Dr. Sophia Bous Hufnagel.
Those against telling teenage people their total genetic picture argue that the results may produce anxiety and undue family stress. The majority of physicians are opposed to telling teens their probable health future based on genetic testing. Not so oddly, 87 percent of people between the ages of 17 and 18 want to know what their future has in store for them based on the genetic screening that can reveal potential disease states that cannot be treated at all or must be treated in adulthood after the disease state has manifested itself.
The desire to know increase dramatically as people grew in age from 12 to 18. The majority of the teens at all ages wanted to make the decision to know with their parents. The most frequently cited reasons for wanting to know the future included marital plans, career plans, plans to have children, and education. Minimal differences in the response of teens based on sex or race were found in the study.
The small study of 282 teens from three public schools in Cincinnati indicates an unexpected level of maturity in teens as opposed to physicians, politicians, or their parents. Knowing that you are genetically predisposed to have a disease may cause anxiety but the mature thing is to know and be able to plan for the potential. The study argues strongly for allowing teens to know what their genes have planned for their future even if the news is not good.
