As if Ashkenazic Jews didn’t have enough tsuris with the ramifications of a study linking genetic diseases to higher intelligence, here comes more worrisome genetic news:
I-Newswire reports that one out of a hundred Jewish women of Ashkenazic descent carry a mutated gene that brings a 65-70% chance of developing breast cancer. The company that “owns” the patent on the gene, US-based Myriad Genetics, has singled out this population for diagnostic purposes, which has the entire European genetic community freaked out.
“This is not the way to go for genetic testing”, said Professor Gert-Jan van Ommen, from the Center of Human and Clinical Genetics, at the Leiden University Medical Center, The Netherlands. “What it means in practice is that genetic centres that do not have licences for this test – or where the healthcare systems cannot afford to pay for it – may be forced to deny it to Ashkenazi Jewish women.”
Jewish women in Europe may face genetic discrimination in access to breast cancer diagnosis if the patent on the BRCA2 gene, which is currently being disputed, is not withheld by the European Patent Office (EPO) on June 29. The European Society for Human Genetics (ESHG) is strongly opposed to the selection of a particular racial group as a diagnostic target in a gene patent claim and is calling on the EPO to take action to prevent this situation.
We’ll keep you and the breasts you love posted. Meanwhile ladies, keep up with regular breast exams and mammograms for early detection.