Just playing with Google this morning, I got the following statistics:

Direct to Consumer Medicine: 12,700,000 results
Direct to Consumer Genetics: 3,510,000 results
Pharmacogenomics (PGX): 1,450,000 results
Pharmacogenetics: 1,330,000 results
CYP2D6: 350,000 results

Of course, many of these results have nothing to do with the subject at hand, reflecting instead the way that Google searches by certain key words. Nevertheless, direct-to-consumer (DTC) genetic testing is hardly an obscure subject.

Recent newspaper articles in The New York Times and Boston Globe
have looked at direct to consumer genetic testing. Ryan Phelan, the CEO of DNA Direct (the business that sponsors this blog) is quoted in the Boston Globe article.

It’s important to recognize that “DTC genetic testing” covers an enormous spectrum. Much of this testing is ancestry testing, using mitochondrial or Y-chromosome DNA, or genomic screening to estimate the probability that an individual has descended from a particular set of geographic or ethnic ancestors. Other testing looks for genetic traits that are associated with disease risk or responses to medications (PGX). While there is some controversy about the significance or accuracy of some of these tests, all of them are based on serious science.

Unfortunately there is also some genetic testing that is simply bogus. This is testing that claims to use DNA analysis to specify, for example, dietary plans or skin care regimens. It’s unfortunate that this testing is conflated with the more serious analyses.

Please take a look at the articles cited above. You may need to register to view them on-line, but registration is free. I welcome your comments.

Technorati Tags: PGX, ancestry testing, direct to consumer

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