Pre-Implantation Genetic Diagnosis Approved in the UK
The UK’s Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority (HFEA) is expected to approve pre-implantation genetic diagnosis (PGD) today for the genes BRCA1, BRCA2, and HNPCC. BRCA genes are implicated in breast and ovarian cancers while the HNPCC gene is involved in colon cancer. Women who carry the high risk versions of these genes will be allowed to undergo IVF to select embryos which are free of the mutations.
- BRCA1 and BRCA2 raise the risk of ovarian cancer to 40 per cent.
- BRCA1 and BRCA 2 account for about 5 per cent of the 41,700 cases of breast cancer in Britain each year.
- HNPCC, or hereditary non-polyposis colon cancer, confers a 90 per cent risk of bowel cancer for men, and 70 per cent for women, by the age of 70.
- HNPCC accounts for up to 5 per cent of 34,900 annual cases in Britain.
These numbers show that while having BRCA1, BRCA2, or HNPCC significantly increases a person’s risk of cancer, most cancers are still not caused by these specific mutations. The majority of cancer cases arise from a combination of other genes and environmental/lifestyle factors, such as smoking.
The Times also had a quote from Karin Cohn, a BRCA1 gene carrier, who has had many family members develop breast and ovarian cancers:
Anyone who has experienced what a gene like this can do to a family would have no doubts about embryo screening. If it had been available when I started my family, it would have been a no-brainer. This should be made as easy as getting IVF.
Everyone has the right to choose what is right for their family. But I just wonder how Karin would feel if she could imagine herself and other family members who carry one of the BRCA genes not ever having had the chance to live a life at all despite the specter of cancer. Even without cancer, there are a host of other diseases, like cardiovascular disease, that plague us.
The Times UK, May 9, 2006
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Hi I’m from NZ and my husband and I have been approved for PGD for HNPCC. We were told today that the lab in Australia think it could be took difficult to find a good embryo as screening could be difficult as there are only 3 markers to test from. Please could someone tell me if after the approval of PGD in Britain in 2006 whether families have gone through with PGD for HNPCC and how successful it was as not a lot is known about it here in New Zealand? Thank you very much