Link: http://www.guardian....1340755,00.html
Bowel cancer test for embryos
James Sturcke
Monday November 1, 2004
The Guardian
Four couples with inherited forms of bowel cancer have won the right to choose embryos free from genes which may trigger the disease in future generations, it emerged last night.
University College hospital in central London will be allowed to screen embryos for the gene which causes familial adenomatous polyposis (FAP), an aggressive colon cancer, following the decision by the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority.
The ruling opens the way for the procedure to be used to prevent many more late-onset diseases, experts said last night.
"This is the first step. If the technology is available to get rid of mutated genes that will lead to cancer, it's going to be only a matter of time before tests are offered to patients to eliminate them," Paul Serhal, of University College hospital, told the Times.
Under the screening process, only embryos free of the faulty gene will be implanted. The test has been approved previously only for childhood or untreatable disorders such as cystic fibrosis and Huntingdon's disease.
A spokeswoman for the HFEA confirmed the licence had been granted to University College hospital. "FAP is a serious condition which has a devastating effect on those who inherit it. Families with the genetic condition have a 50% chance of passing it on to their children," she said. FAP usually develops between the ages of 20 and 40 and the risk can be reduced by surgery.
Opponents say the tests deny life to embryos rejected by the screening process.
