Article | Published:

“Well, good luck with that”: reactions to learning of increased genetic risk for Alzheimer disease

Genetics in Medicine 20, 1462–1467 (2018) | Download Citation

Subjects

Abstract

Purpose

Apolipoprotein-E (APOE) genetic testing to estimate risk for developing late-onset Alzheimer disease is increasingly being offered without prior genetic counseling or preparation. Consumer interest continues to grow, raising the question of how best to conduct such testing.

Methods

Twenty-six semistructured interviews were carried out to study the reactions of individuals who had already learned of their higher risk after APOE testing had been done because of a family history of Alzheimer disease, or from genetic tests done for other health-related or general-interest reasons.

Results

Adverse psychological reactions were reported by a substantial fraction of the participants, including those who had specifically sought testing, those for whom the information came as a surprise, those with a family history, and those with no known history. Still, nearly all of those interviewed said that they had benefited in the long term from lifestyle changes, often learned from online sources, that they subsequently made.

Conclusion

The results show that people should be prepared prior to any genetic testing and allowed to opt out of particular tests. If testing is carried out and a higher risk is revealed, they should be actively assisted in deciding how to proceed.

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                    This study was supported in part by the Department of Science, Technology, and Society at Virginia Tech.

                    Author information

                    Affiliations

                    1. Department of Science, Technology, and Society, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, Virginia, USA, and Department of Basic Science Education, Virginia Tech Carilion School of Medicine, Roanoke, Virginia, USA

                      • Doris T Zallen PhD

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                    Disclosure

                    The author declares no conflict of interest.

                    Corresponding author

                    Correspondence to Doris T Zallen PhD.

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                    DOI

                    https://doi.org/10.1038/gim.2018.13