Section B · Page 6
The University Daily Kansan
Tuesday, September 21, 1999
JERRY M. NOSSAMAN, DDS and BRIAN C. WILKERSON, DDS are pleased to announce the continued association in dentistry with MICHELLE ANDERSON, DDS and the addition of their new associate JUSTIN R. ANDERSON, DDS
NOSSAMAN, WILKERSON & ASSOCIATES, D.D.S., P.A.
VERMONT STREET STATION • 831 VERMONT STREET • LAWRENCE, KS 66044
(785) 843-6060
We continue to accept new patients Saturday and evening appointments available
Genetic test quality examined
WASHINGTON—A gene test concluded Nancy Seeger at greatly increased risk of getting breast and ovarian cancer, so the Illinois woman, who had watched cancer kill her mother and aunt, had her ovaries removed.
Eight months later, Seeger got more devastating news: The company that tested her genes had made a mistake — she didn't have the cancerous genetic defect after all.
Gene tests that promise to predict a person's future health are being sold to Americans, for hundreds of dollars each, with a seldom-mentioned caveat: No one regulates the accuracy of most of those tests, even though mistakes can be life-altering.
The Food and Drug Administration, which oversees most medical tests, says it lacks the money to regulate gene tests, such
as the one Seeger took.
Experts say that while most laboratories do a good job — and genetic tests are powerful tools that can help many people — Seeger's experience illustrates risks that the public and doctors must understand.
Now, Health and Human Services Secretary Donna Shalala has appointed a panel of leading geneticists to determine, by Dec. 1, how to ensure quality gene testing.
Neal Holtzman, who headed a National Institutes of Health genetics task force, told Shalala's advisers that one company quit marketing tests to predict who was at risk of Alzheimer's disease only after a study found people with that gene actually had less than a 20 percent chance of getting sick.
Scientists already have developed about 600 genetic tests. The majority are for very rare diseases in families plagued by certain illnesses.
But more routine testing of healthy people to predict their future risks of cancer or other killers is poised to explode, said Francis Collins, the institute's gene director.
"The risks of something going wrong, or of marketing a test before you've proven its utility, are significant," said Collins, one of Shalala's genetics advisers.
The question is how to lower those risks without stifling a rapidly moving field.
The FDA does regulate special gene test kits sold to doctors by a handful of companies. But the FDA isn't regulating the vast majority of genetic tests, those performed by laboratories or companies shipped a patient's blood.
Some experts think the FDA's lengthy approval process could inappropriately slow genetics testing. They said that alternatives exist, such as setting professional standards for gene testing.
WATKINS 12th ANNUAL HEALTH FAIR
September 22nd & 23rd 9 a.m. - 3 p.m. West Entrance of Watkins
"Tune Into Your Health"
Free Body Fat Assessment Free Cholestrol Check
Free Personal Nutrition Profile
For more information call 864-9500
Free bagels, beverages, and more!
*Based on survey responses from 1,600 KU students. Survey administered by the KU Office of Institutional Research & Planning (1999).
Most KU
watkins health center
students
All KU students are invited to explore the opportunities in business:
Open the Door to Opportunity
KANSAS UNION BALLROOM WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 22 1:00 p.m. TO 6:00 p.m.
- View company displays and literature
ATTEND THE 1999 BUSINESS CAREER FAIR
- Visit with company representatives
- Match your career goals with available jobs
- Distribute your resume
- Check out internship possibilities
- Attend panel discussions
Sponsored by the Business Career Services Center For a list of companies attending stop by our office or check out our web site. 125 Summerfield Hall http://www.bschool.ukans.edu/bsc
Call for more information!!!
The University Of Kansas School of Business
(785) 864-5591