July-August 2014 Genomic research—including whole genome sequencing and whole exome sequencing— has a growing presence in contemporary biomedical investigation. The capacity of sequencing techniques to generate results that go beyond the primary aims of the research—historically referred to as “incidental findings”—has generated considerable discussion as to how this information should be handl...

Incidental findings: expect to find the unexpected When a CT scan for a fractured pelvis turns up a kidney abnormality, doctors must decide what this information means — and whether to tell the patient. Incidental findings and the ethical quandaries surrounding their disclosure are increasingly common due to improved medical technology, the US Presidential Commission for the Study of Bioethical...

In March of 2013, the American College of Medical Genetics and Genomics (ACMG) issued recommendations for the reporting of incidental findings produced by clinical exome and genome sequencing (1, 2 ). This guideline on incidental findings has been controversial, because the recommendations are a departure from previous ethical concepts of patient autonomy and the reporting of adult-onset diseas...

A healthy adult volunteers to serve as a control subject in an fMRI study. The subject provides informed consent, and a tailored protocol designed for the particular study then is executed. In most cases, the research subject altruistically assumes that the result will benefit science in some way. However, does science owe the volunteer a fair assessment of the information not relevant to the f...

AIMS Cardiac magnetic resonance (CMR) imaging benefits from a large field of view, but consequently captures incidental extra-cardiac findings (IEFs). There is a relative paucity of data for CMR in this regard. Our objectives were to assess the frequency and significance of IEFs reported from clinically indicated CMR scans, and additionally to ascertain if reporting rates differed between radio...