August 18, 2004
Genetics and Heredity
Question from Canberra, Australia:
My daughter was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes about 6 months ago, at the age of 13. There is no recent family history of type 1 diabetes. I know that siblings of the person with diabetes are often tested to see if they are genetically predisposed to getting diabetes. Given that people can get type 1 when they’re older, and that children get their genes from their parents, are parents ever tested to see if they are genetically predisposed?
Answer:
That is a good and logical question. The reality is that the risk with half the genes is usually less, though not always. Some studies will include parents when there are multiple children or multiple members (cousins, etc.) in the family tree.
Most of the time it is a matter of money. The research budget is trying to maximize the return.
LD
