Genetic Profiling Tests
The testing proposed here is a subset of the typical personal genomic testing that is marketed to consumers. Unlike clinical testing for a specific monogenetic disease, in this approach the tests typically result in profile information about the relative risk of developing a condition. The profile results are of limited clinical utility, particularly if they are interpreted without a correlation to a patient’s overall health and medical history and if they yield a relative risk that is indistinguishable from that of the general population [1]. Consumers are not usually given in-depth, personalized pre- and posttest counseling or interpretation assistance as they would be when working with medical geneticists.
There are a range of motives and justifications for genetic profile testing. Proponents can reasonably argue that any information about current health or future diseases could potentially be useful, particularly if it can be obtained noninvasively and at modest cost. Businesses that sell testing kits or services have been effective in marketing them to the general public, but the benefit of such testing is nowhere near as clear as that of diagnostic testing in the clinical setting.