Expert: Dana Krempels, Ph.D. - 10/1/2008

Question
I understand that people want to know their family history but why is it so important to study genetics when it comes to child development?  If a couple decides to have a baby, and the female has breast cancer in her family history for instance, the couple finds out it's going to be a girl.  Because they studied both genes and know the outcome and didn't want their girl to end up having breast cancer in the long run, the couple decides to abort the baby. Wouldn't that be morally wrong?  I feel that it's wrong because what if some miracle that baby wouldn't get breast cancer, so why is it so important?

Answer
Dear Jordana,

Most people would agree that it would be morally wrong to abort a child simply because there is a *risk* of cancer in the family.  A genetic tendency towards cancer does not guarantee that anyone will get cancer, since environment is known to play a strong role in the development of this disorder.

But, abortion aside, it's important to be prepared for genetic problems  once a child is born.  If a couple knows they are going to have a baby with Down Syndrome and choose not to abort, they will know in advance the steps they will need to take to make sure their different child is well cared for and medically treated to the best of their ability.

Many genetic disorders can be treated, and they can be treated more quickly if the parents are prepared and know what to expect.  In the future, there may even be ways to treat genetic disorders before a person is born via gene therapy, and the sooner this is done, the less likely there are to be effects of the genetic problem at all.

If you know your genetic history and know that there is a high risk of a genetic disease in your family, you might simply opt to not take the risk of having children at all.  It's all up to the individual.

Bottom line:  It's important to know genetic problems in advance so that one can be prepared and take the action that individual (or couple) feels is right.

Hope that helps.

Dana