Diversity of thought: public perceptions of genetic testing across ethnic groups in the UK
Author(s)
Type
Journal Article
Abstract
Genetic testing is becoming rapidly more accessible to the general populous either through or outside healthcare systems. Few large-scale studies have been carried out to gauge public opinion in this growing area. Here, we undertook the largest cross-sectional study on genetic testing in the UK. The primary purpose of this study is to identify the differences in attitudes toward genetic testing across ethnic groups. A cohort of 6500 individuals from a diverse population completed a 72-item survey in a cross-sectional study. Responses between ethnic minority and white individuals in the UK were compared using a wilcoxon rank-sum and chi-square tests. The white cohort was approximately twice as likely to have taken a genetic test and 13% more had heard about genetic testing before the survey. The ethnic minority cohort appeared more apprehensive about the impact of genetic testing on employability. This study highlights that in the UK, significant differences in opinions regarding genetic testing exist between white individuals and ethnic minority individuals. There is an urgent need to develop more inclusive strategies to equally inform individuals from all backgrounds to avoid disparities in the utilisation of genetic testing.
Date Issued
2024-01
Date Acceptance
2023-09-21
Citation
Journal of Human Genetics, 2024, 69 (1), pp.19-25
ISSN
1434-5161
Publisher
Springer Nature [academic journals on nature.com]
Start Page
19
End Page
25
Journal / Book Title
Journal of Human Genetics
Volume
69
Issue
1
Copyright Statement
© The Author(s) 2023. Open Access This article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License, which permits use, sharing, adaptation, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, as long as you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons licence, and indicate if changes were made. The images or other third party material in this article are included in the article’s Creative Commons licence, unless indicated otherwise in a credit line to the material. If material is not included in the article’s Creative Commons licence and your intended use is not permitted by statutory regulation or exceeds the permitted use, you will need to obtain permission directly from the copyright holder. To view a copy of this licence, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/.
License URL
Identifier
https://www.nature.com/articles/s10038-023-01199-1
Subjects
Genetics & Heredity
Life Sciences & Biomedicine
Science & Technology
Publication Status
Published
Date Publish Online
2023-11-01