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[quote=Anonymous]I think this isn't a common worry yet because genetic testing is still pretty new. For instance, my family is extremely healthy. None of my grandparents lived past 84 but arguably that's because they were all smokers for at least twenty years. My parents are still going strong. So I had a bad shock when I tested positive for the breast/ovarian cancer gene (BRCA). No doctor had ever suggested I get tested for this. Before the advent of cheap direct-to-consumer testing, I wouldn't have found out about this, ever (unless, of course, I'd developed cancer, and gotten tested then).

Likewise, when pregnant, I was given (among other things) an Ashkenazi genetics panel (even though I am NOT Ashkenazi) that turned up that I was a carrier for an obscure but debilitating genetic condition. Ironically, my husband does have some Ashkenazi heritage, but isn't a carrier for this (they had to test him once the results came back for me).

Anyway, all this to say: now I know some big bad news about my genetics, and it DOES affect our family planning (IVF with PGD only from here on out to avoid passing on the BRCA mutation). But had we sat down with a genetic counselor before marriage, we would have left thinking we were in the clear, because there is no indication in my family history of these two conditions.[/quote]

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