Medical genetics and genomic medicine in Greece: achievements and challenges

Greece (also known as Hellas) is located in southeastern Europe and is bordered on the north by Albania, the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (F.Y.R.O.M.) and Bulgaria; on the east by the Aegean Sea and Turkey; and on the west and south by the Ionian and Mediterranean seas, respectively. The country consists of the mainland, the Peloponnese peninsula and more than 3000 islands, of which about 170 are inhabited, including Crete, Rhodes, and Corfu, and the Ionian, Dodecanese, and Cyclades groups (Fig. 1). According to the most recent official consensus in 2011, the population was 10,816,286 (www.statistics.gr), with the vast majority being of Greek descent (98%) and the remainder belonging to other ethnicities. Over 95% of Greeks are Orthodox Christians. Muslims comprise 1.3% of the population and the remaining 0.7% includes Catholics, Jews, Old Calendar Orthodox, Jehovah Witnesses, Protestants, and other religions. The majority of the Muslim minority is concentrated in the area of northern Greece called Thrace. They are the only officially recognized minority in Greece and received legal status through the Treaty of Lausanne in 1923. Nearly half of the population lives in the two major cities, Athens and Thessaloniki, after a significant urbanization trend that was observed in the 20th and 21st centuries. In 1981, Greece joined the European Union, and then it became the 12th member of the European Economic and Monetary Union in 2001. Greece being a gateway to Europe from the Middle East and Southwest Asia has experienced a rapidly growing number of immigrants/ refugees due to the recent instability and conflicts in these regions, but has minorities also from eastern and central Europe, primarily Albania, Bulgaria, and other countries (2011 consensus).