SHOULD I TEST MY GENES?
Last year, after my mother died of cancer that she seemed to have inherited from her mother I set out to discover if I also had this familial cancer gene, or any other gene that might impact on my health.
To understand why I might want to know I met other patients who have already discovered they have bad genes. Julie’s mother and sister both have cancer, and she is facing the terrible choice of having a double mastectomy so that she can prevent herself from going the same way.
One of the most extraordinary benefits of the brave new world of genetics is called Pre-implantation Genetic Diagnosis (PGD). Tracy and Thomas are in the midst of the process, screening embryos in order toprevent a gene mistake from being passed down the generations. Will the wonder of science deliver a healthy baby?
A few hundred couples go through PGD every year on the NHS? But there are millions of people in Britain who inherit diseased genes: is the NHS serving then? I reveal that if the NHS tracked through the families of patients with a disease called Familial Hypocholesterolemia then the nation could save thousands of people from suffering, and money which could be diverted to other patients inneed.
In the end, this is a film about whether or not I have any inherited genes? Morever, even if I do can the secrets of our blood foretell our destiny, and even if they could would it be worth knowing?