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DTCGen is one of the modules of the HumGen International database (www.humgen.org), and as such, is a document repository of international, national and regional materials regarding the ethical, legal, and social issues pertaining to direct-to-consumer (DTC) genetic testing services. The academic, professional, and governmental publications gathered in the DTCGen module all pertain to the marketing and/or offer of genetic testing services directly to consumers. Since the completion of the sequencing of the human genome, there has been a steady increase in the number of genetic tests developed and offered via the traditional health care system. Furthermore, private commercial companies outside of the health care system have recently been offering genetic tests directly to consumers. This means that consumers can obtain genetic tests without ever seeing or speaking with a doctor or genetic counsellor (or any other certified health care professional). This new model of genetic test provision has generated a great deal of debate and concern within the health care field and has the potential to have a concrete impact on consumers. For these reasons, research on DTC genetic testing is an important priority. The elaboration of the DTCGen module was made possible through collaboration between McGill University′s Centre of Genomics and Policy (Montreal, Canada, with funding from Génome Québec/Genome Canada) and the Katholieke Universiteit Leuven′s Centre for Biomedical Ethics and Law (Leuven, Belgium, with financial support from the European Commission FP7 Marie Curie initiative and the Research Fund Flanders). |
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