Official Journal of the Human Genome Organisation
Table 3 GAMY project group days
From: The GAMY Project: young people’s attitudes to genetics in the South Wales valleys
Theme of day | Activities |
|---|---|
Day 1: Introduction to genetics (n = 18 participants) | First thoughts—what does genetics mean to you? |
What are we going to do? The aim of the project, the commitment involved, our ideas for activities and naming the project | |
Web of health issues—what factors influence health, and how are they related? | |
Genetics and the media—how is genetics represented in the media? | |
Genetics and health—the influence of lifestyle and genetics on health | |
Genetics and ethics—what do you think about ‘designer babies’? | |
Day 2: Inheritance and health (n = 13 participants) | GAMY monsters—the influence of genes and environmental factors on the traits exhibited by an individual, and how these genes are passed down through generations |
The GAMY family tree—how to draw a family tree and what information this can provide | |
Risk in the GAMY family—the chance or risk of displaying a trait may be influenced by genes and by environmental factors | |
Telling your family story—including the fundamental components of what it is about, how it develops and where it ends | |
Day 3: Genetics and reproductive decision making (n = 9 participants) | Genetic options during pregnancy—screening and diagnostic tests available, options if a problem is found and pre-implantation genetic diagnosis (PGD) and the concept of “designer baby” technology to avoid having a baby with a genetic condition |
Designer babies—what would your designer baby look like? | |
What would you do? Attitudes towards termination (abortion) for various genetic conditions | |
Ethics and ‘designer babies’—debating some of the ethical issues surrounding ‘designer baby’ technology | |
How to make a digital story—to express ideas about these issues | |
Day 4: Genetics and common health conditions (n = 9 participants) | Electronic voting—to look at knowledge and opinions about risk for common health conditions, and whether these change over the course of the day activities |
Risk and heart disease—Risk activity showing combined effect of genetic and environmental factors | |
On risk for heart disease, with most genes having a small impact but one gene alteration leading to a greatly increased risk | |
The role of genetics in common health conditions—presentation about heart disease and breast cancer, and the role of genetics | |
Genetic testing: breast cancer (BRCA) gene case study—exploring genetic testing and the implications for individuals and families | |
Genetic testing: Familial Hypercholesterolemia—talk from an individual who has had genetic testing and has modified her behaviour due to her increased risk |