Approval for pre-pregnancy genetic screening

GENETIC tests could be offered to more young people and couples wanting to start a family to alert them of risks from diseases which they may pass to future generations, a report says.

The Human Genetics Commission (HGC) said there were no specific "social, ethical or legal" reasons why people could not undergo pre-pregnancy genetic screening on the NHS to determine if they are at risk of passing on conditions such as cystic fibrosis and Huntington's disease.

Their advice opens up the possibility of a national screening programme being launched, giving those who may want to have children the chance to find out any genetic risks, allowing them to make decisions in advance of pregnancy, such as screening embryos before they are implanted or deciding to adopt or use donor eggs or sperm.

But ethics groups raised concerns about such a move, saying it could give the green light to a "eugenic procedure".

The HGC developed the guidance following a request for advice from the UK National Screening Committee. The committee will now decide whether widespread screening should be introduced.

Their advice will then be passed to the UK governments, who normally follow their recommendations. Many diseases such as cystic fibrosis or sickle cell disease can develop in youngsters if both parents are carriers of the genetic condition.

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But at the moment, only people with a known risk of inherited disease due to a family history, or those with access to local programmes, can get the tests.

Dr Frances Flinter, who chairs the working group that developed the report, said: "This means many individuals or couples do not discover that they carry a genetic condition until they are pregnant.

"A preconception test rather than a test during pregnancy or after a child is born will ensure greater patient choice and access to information that will help support people who are planning to have children."

The report says that preconception genetic testing should be made available to "all those who may benefit from it".

It says people should also be given advice so they can make informed choices about the reproductive options available to them. The Cystic Fibrosis Trust said it backed screening with proper information and support in place.

"We believe that pre-conception genetic screening should be available to all those that want it, provided it is accompanied by the appropriate level of support and counselling as to the next steps the prospective parents could take if the tests were positive," a spokeswoman said.

But the recommendations were strongly attacked by ethics and reproductive health campaign groups.Calum Mackellar, from the Scottish Council on Human Bioethics, said they would be "deeply concerned" about such a screening programme.

Dr David King, director of the genetic watchdog group Human Genetics Alert, said: "This immensely dangerous report advocates the quickest route to a eugenics which has little difference from that seen in the early 20th century: a general trawl through the whole population to weed out all 'bad genes'."