Tests, Choices, and Hypothetical “Bright Lines”

March 1, 2006

The Vatican yesterday held a conference to examine the topic of preimplantation genetic diagnosis (PGD). “In the procedure, a cell from an embryo [created by in vitro fertilization (IVF)] is tested for genetic conditions and diseases, such as Downs Syndrome, sickle-cell anemia and cystic fibrosis.” Some embryos are also screened for tissue compatibility for ill siblings and for sex selection. Embryos not meeting the requisite criteria are “discarded.” Speakers at the conference “said there were serious moral and ethical issues” with PGD. Dr. Joe Leigh Simpson of Baylor College of Medicine did not attend the conference, but criticized concern over PGD: “The public draws a bright line in the sand as to those types of enhancements that would or would not be socially acceptable. These are hypothetical arguments.”

Turning, then, to the non-hypothetical, another article reports that sixteen women have filed a lawsuit against the maker of the Baby Gender Mentor kit. The $275 was guaranteed to be 99.9% accurate in detecting “tiny bits of fetal DNA in the mother’s blood that could determine a baby’s sex earlier and more accurately than ever before.” In short, women purchased the test kit, took the test, and subsequently had contradictory results from ultrasound and actually giving birth.

Typing “pgd sex selection” into Google, the first result returned is a page on the website of “The Fertility Institutes” reporting “OVER 1200 CASES: 100% SEX SELECTION SUCCESS” with PGD.

These are not hypothetical questions, and history shows that the “bright line” drawn by public opinion is constantly shifting.

For further study: CBHD has a number of articles on PGD, sex selection, and other reproductive technologies in the sections on Genetics and Reproductive Technologies.