Genetic Testing Before Conception

Genetic test said to predict risk of having children afflicted with wide-range of inherited diseases.
On the front page of its Business Day section, the New York Times (1/29, B1, Pollack) reports that Counsyl is "selling a test that it says can tell couples whether they are at risk of having children with a range of inherited diseases, including cystic fibrosis, Tay-Sachs, spinal muscular atrophy, sickle cell disease and Pompe disease." Indeed, the idea is not novel, but other current tests focus on "certain ethnic groups" and a limited number of diseases, costing consumers "hundreds or even thousands of dollars." But the Universal Genetic Test "costs $349 for an individual or $698 for a couple." Some, however, say "that it is too soon to know how accurate Counsyl's test actually is, in part because neither the company nor any outside reviewer has published papers on its approach and results."