Attitudes toward genetic testing in patients at risk for HNPCC/FAP and the German population

Research output: Contribution to journalResearch articleContributedpeer-review

Contributors

Abstract

Adequate knowledge regarding hereditary diseases and genetics, as well as personal attitudes toward gene tests, are major determinants of optimal utilization of genetic testing. In the present study, we aimed to explore the general attitudes toward genetic testing in a sample representative of the German general population (n = 2,076) and to compare the attitudes of persons at risk for hereditary non-polyposis colorectal cancer/familial adenomatous polyposis (HNPCC/FAP) (n = 36) who had attended a university genetic counseling service, with a matched general population sample. We administered a subset of a questionnaire previously used in a Finnish study (Jallinoja et al., 1998). The 12 statements pertain to approval, disapproval, and concern for genetic testing. Overall, the results reveal high approval of genetic testing in the German population and in at-risk persons. In accordance with other studies, we find that the attitudes of individuals for whom hereditary disease is a salient issue of personal relevance and the attitudes of the general public are very similar. Only a few significant differences between these two samples emerged, indicating that at-risk persons hold a more favourable view of the testing. One intriguing finding was the high rate of "don't know" responses, especially in the general population sample. Compared to results from Finland, approval of genetic testing is lower in the German population, and endorsement of "don't knows" is remarkably higher. We argue for increased attention to the issue of attitude change after genetic counseling and for the need of comparative cross-cultural research on attitudes toward gene technology.

Details

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)273-280
Number of pages8
JournalGenetic testing
Volume6
Issue number4
Publication statusPublished - 2002
Peer-reviewedYes

External IDs

EBSCO https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=pdx&AN=0282819&site=ehost-live
WOS 000180160300005
Scopus 0036912441
ORCID /0000-0002-1491-9195/work/142255969

Keywords

Sustainable Development Goals

Keywords

  • Adenomatous Polyposis Coli/genetics, Colorectal Neoplasms, Hereditary Nonpolyposis/genetics, Genetic Testing/psychology, Germany, Heterozygote, Humans, Surveys and Questionnaires

Library keywords