Disclosure of Genetic Information After Death

The article “You can’t take your genes with you: Strategies to share genetic information after death” discusses a research article published in the March 2 issue of Trends in Molecular Medicine. This paper asks if it is ethically acceptable for medical professionals to disclose the genetic information of deceased individuals to their family members, particularly if there is risk of a heritable disease. The authors distinguish between the ideas of active disclosure, when healthcare professionals offer unsolicited information to the deceased’s family, and passive disclosure, when they only provide information after a specific request. They also recommend policies and propose topics for further research, such as different cultural norms that might impact institutions’ individual policies.

Meredith Katz

http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2015-03/cp-yct022315.php

Original article: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/25743261