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Choose Genetic Testing Carefully - [03/26/08]

Summary: Genetic tests can screen blood and other tissue to find genetic disorders and markers. Increasingly, people are opting for commercial genetic tests to identify their potential health risks. But without the expertise of a medical professional, the information from home genetic tests might not be very helpful or easy to understand. It could even be detrimental.

Comment: Genetic testing can reveal a range of health information, including whether a person carries a gene associated with certain types of mental illness. There are several hundred kinds of genetic tests and (it seems) nearly that many online offers to perform them. Before you submit to a commercial genetic test, consult this information from the Mayo Clinic and the National Institutes of Health to protect yourself as a patient and consumer.

Read article - Mayo Clinic. March 26, 2008.
Read article - MedlinePlus.