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Are any of the DNA testing companies trustworthy? (lemmy.world)

submitted 1 year ago by [email protected] to c/[email protected]

53 comments fedilink hide all child comments

So obviously we're all on Lemmy for a complicated combination of reasons, but we all likely share some common ground, namely...

need for privacy
need to own/control/access the data we produce
healthy skepticism about the trustworthiness of for-profit corporations, in general

So if we don't want meta to know even innocuous things; like how many times/when we message our grandma, and we don't google to know when we're searching for remedies to a rash, and we don't want reddit to... Well we just don't want reddit - we don't want them to profit from or weaponize that data against us in a myriad ways.

We also don't want them artificially removing features and creating tiered layers of service/value hidden behind a paywall (I understand this is very present in the some of the commercially available DNA services).

So that brings me to DNA testing services. Since they started to emerge in the mainstream they were immediately an interesting, exciting novelty and I also knew it was data I wouldn't feel safe trusting with a for-profit org - with broken systems like law enforcement and health insurers on speed dial and just salivating for the goodies they collect.

So all that considered, any groups that provide this type of service that you do trust/use, and why?

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[–] [email protected] 28 points 1 year ago (2 children)

Unless you have a super compelling reason to get sequenced, do not use direct to consumer sequencing services or offerings. In general it's not so much the tech or whatnot that is bad, but rather without being in a position to determine if you have some genetic, prospective genetic screening isn't ideal.

If you feel you have a good reason to be sequenced (eg family history of a kind of cancer, particularly breast and colon), seek out a genetics consult with a genetic counsellor or geneticist at a major hospital or academic center.

This comment isn't to constitute any kind of medical advice. Rather, you are much better served getting sequenced done well.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 1 year ago

I just want to cosign on this. I found out that I have Lynch syndrome, which carries an 80% chance of colon cancer and 60% likelihood of endometrial cancer. I thought I was prepared to hear that I had it, but I wasn't. When I heard my test was positive, I freaked out. I was really glad to have a licensed genetics counselor deliver the news and talk with me in the following weeks and months as I adjusted.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Do you know, are there typically any scenarios where work with a geneticist at a hospital may be covered by insurance?

[–] [email protected] 1 points 1 year ago

I do not as this is not my expertise. In general though, reaching out to specialty academic/medical units are usually a great first step for pursuing something particularly esoteric.