Imagine knowing if a child will have a genetic disorder such as Down Syndrome. Or if the child will obtain Alzheimer's disease as they grow old? Ponder the stress of having an outcome of such a life changing result, and watching the child grow up with the constant remind of the fatal disease that awaits them. This is becoming a depressing reality for people worldwide knowing their pre destined fate or future diagnosis due to Prenatal Genetic Testing. Prenatal Genetic testing shows whether or not if the fetus has certain mutations or disabilities. The procedure involves extracting a small amount of the placenta or cells from the pregnant mother. The tests can identify whether the child is more likely to have a certain condition or mutation, although not all outcomes can be found. At this stage results are not definitive and cannot be 100% accurate. An example showing this is “While the fetal DNA analysis had predicted 39 of those, it also wrongly predicted 25 million other potential de novo mutations”(Marcus, 2015, p.2). A de novo is a change in a gene which is present for the first time in a family member because of a mutation in a germ cell of …show more content…
Although Prenatal Genetic testing can help people prepare for the future, based on the results it may cause ethical issues, and strain and stress on families. The possibility of not receiving the results expected are devastating to families, it can lead to divorce due to the ethical issues it carries along, such as the ethical issues of abortion of a disabled baby. Or abortion of a baby because it isn't the gender you prefer. It is growing rapidly across the world, but so is the fight against Prenatal Genetic Testing. People may be more prepared but are they ready to live with the thought they will have Alzheimer's in 30 years? Or if their child will have down