Despite the benefits of predictive medicines, realistically it is not a panacea to all medical problems. With predictive medicines, there is a risk of false positives. Even at a 99.9% accuracy rate, that is 1 in 1,000 people being subjected to the unnecessary stress of thinking they are at risk of something that will never develop. If the diseases never develop, they might end up taking treatments and medications which they might not even require in the first place.
Moreover, genetic testing conducted by medical corporations and pharmaceutical companies can lead to several issues. Drug companies may target new medications for the most prevalent and most drug-responsive genotypes. Entire portions of the population could be left out of new research endeavours as enterprise efforts favour the genotypes that hold the most potential for profit. Without strong laws, many groups risk becoming therapeutic orphans. Predictive analytics also poses a risk because of the technology that increases the pace of the decision-making process, and the exact point at which the decision needs to be handed over from a machine to a human mental process is usually unclear and unregulated.
Moreover, many companies are today using genetic testing for commercial purposes, Biobanks are being funded by governments in Britain, America, China, Finland, Canada, Austria, and Qatar. Online services are also trying to lure patients into getting their genetics tested. An example of one such company is 23&Me, a genome company which allows people to spit in a test tube, send it back to the company and receive inferences about the ancestry and an assessment of various health traits. Plenty of doctors and health professionals are understandably sceptical about these websites that are downright frauds that offer bogus testing for intelligence, sporting ability or wine preference.
Apart from that, there are also ethical issues related to the use of predictive medicine. Considering that there is personal and sensitive medical data required for predictive medicine there is a question of who bears the responsibility of this data? would governments oversee a person’s genetic data? Should employers use this medical information to hire professionals? Should insurance companies be allowed to access medical information to determine insurance costs? As with any new development in healthcare, medical ethics must be considered when collecting genetic data and applying the findings of polygenic risk scores to patient care.
There are social issues, too, to consider. With pre-existing conditions already complicating healthcare provisions, there is a legitimate concern that individuals with negative genetic predictors for certain diseases could face discrimination. As the medical sector incorporates more predictive strategies into diagnostics and care, data protection will be paramount and rules protecting individuals from discrimination based on genetic predictions established.
