IIp15-16_0909.qxd 26/8/09 17:52 Page 3
Healthcare | 15
Unravelling
the genomic
conundrum
Why medical insurers
don’t want to know
about your genes.
Dr Sneh Khemka,
Medical Director of Bupa
T
hings have come on a long way
since James Watson and Francis
Crick first unravelled the
structure of DNA in 1953. The
last few decades have seen
enormous advances in our
understanding of genetics and
with it, the advent of genetic testing.
International, discusses the
Our genes are the biological information we
inherit from our parents, carried in all our cells
brave new world of genetic
in the form of DNA. Mutations, or changes, in
our genes can increase or decrease our risk of
profiling and its impact
developing a variety of diseases. Genetic tests
enable people to find out whether they carry
on the insurance
these mutations in their genes, and with it, the
risk of disease.
industry
Genetic testing means we can identify
newborn babies who have serious, inherited
conditions such as phenylketonuria (PKU),
cystic fibrosis and sickle cell anaemia within a
week of birth – allowing prompt treatment and
minimising serious complications.
It means that the man who discovers he has
the gene mutation signifying Huntington’s
disease can make informed choices about his
future, while the woman who knows she has a
genetic mutation bestowing high breast cancer
www.investmentinternational.com September 2009 Investment International
Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17  |  Page 18  |  Page 19  |  Page 20  |  Page 21  |  Page 22  |  Page 23  |  Page 24  |  Page 25  |  Page 26  |  Page 27  |  Page 28  |  Page 29  |  Page 30  |  Page 31  |  Page 32  |  Page 33  |  Page 34  |  Page 35  |  Page 36