Direct-to-consumer genetic testing: reliable or risky?

In recent years there has been a dramatic increase in the discovery of information related to the genetic risk of disease, as well as in the technical ability to accurately measure an individual’s genotype. These advances underlie the promise of personalized medicine, in which a patient’s genotype informs the medical care they receive. Private companies are attempting to capitalize on these advances by providing direct-to-consumer (DTC) genetic testing that estimates the risk of disease for a customer, given their genotype. Because these tests make claims about medical conditions, they have come under scrutiny by regulatory agencies. We ask experts in the field to comment on several issues relevant to DTC genetic testing.