Hastings Center News

Genomics Enters the Clinic: What Should Savvy Consumers Know?

Genetics is finally being integrated into the clinic: cancer patients are having their cancer’s genome sequenced, fertility patients are having their embryos tested, and parents are being offered sequencing of their newborn babies. At the same time, genetics services are also being offered directly to consumers, sold as a way to complete their family trees or identify their risk for a variety of health conditions. These scientific advances bring huge benefits to human health and scientific understanding. But as with all major scientific advances, maximizing the benefits requires knowledge of the pitfalls, limitations, and trade-offs. What do potential users of genomics need to know about the science and ethics of these technologies?

These question will be addressed at “Genomics Enters the Clinic: What Should Savvy Consumers Know?,” a public event in New York City, presented by The Hastings Center, the New York Academy of Sciences, and the Aspen Brain Institute. Hastings Center director of research Josephine Johnston will be a panelist; Hastings president Mildred Solomon will moderate the discussion. Sandra Soo-Jin Lee of Columbia University, Christopher Mason of Weill Cornell Medical College, Jonathan Moreno of the University of Pennsylvania, and Samuel Sternberg of the University of California, Berkeley are also panelists.

The event, which is open to the public, will take place tonight, June 11, at the New York Academy of Sciences. Read more. Register for the event. Watch the livestream.