According to researchers, now you can! An article that was recently posted by Dennis Thompson from HealthDay on February 20th stated that a gene-based test might be able to predict the possibility of your odds of getting some commonly known illnesses.
Currently, there are ten gene tests or scans that can be done that show the probability of an individual getting a certain illness. Some of the illnesses that can be tested are high cholesterol, asthma, obesity, kidney disease, heart disease, prostate cancer, type one and two diabetes, and even atrial fibrillation.
These tests are in their testing phase in clinical research in ten academic medical centers across the nation of the United States. For this study and testing, 25,000 participants have taken part and allowed researchers to identify as well as verify the precise spots on the genome to assess the probability of the tested illness and create an overall risk score. Currently, most of the participants are of European descent but researchers are widening their evidence to be able to review participants of different genetic ancestry.
The main goal for these researchers is to locate risks of illnesses that can be treated so they aren't giving people results of something they could do nothing about. This allows those who do have a higher risk for a particular illness to get preventative treatment so it does not become a threatening issue in the future.
This is going to be something amazing in the future! I believe that if this continues to be successful and yields accurate results, these tests are going to be in every hospital. Since these tests target common treatable illnesses, they will overall improve the quality of life of many in the long run and prevent people from being in and out of hospitals, reduce the need for prescriptions, and more. Hopefully, once these ten tests are perfected, there can be new tests that follow for other common and maybe not-so-common illnesses.
Sources:
(News article) https://www.usnews.com/news/health-news/articles/2024-02-20/gene-based-tests-could-predict-your-odds-for-common-illnesses
(Scientific article) https://www.nature.com/articles/s41591-024-02796-z
It is amazing genetics have made it possible for us to test for these types of issues. My dad had a stroke in 2023 related to his high blood pressure which we found out is also hereditary. I feel for younger generations knowing your predisposition to these diseases can help make better choices towards possibly preventing them.
ReplyDelete