Beware Cancer Advertisements?

Myriad Genetics is a Salt Lake City based biotechnology company that utilizes “direct-to-customer” campaigns to get women concerned about cancer to take a test that detects genes that potentially could result in breast or ovarian cancer. Arthur Caplan claims that the company’s growth results from its “exploiting fear of cancer to sell its test.” He argues that because only 1 in 400 women actually possess the genetic mutation that could result in cancer and because the test they advertise for is its own, the company’s campaign is much more business than education and, moreover, it is exploitation.

The reality is, as Caplan says, that Myriad Genetics is a company, and companies conduct business. That is their main purpose. They are not responsible for educating the general public. Myriad says that its ads are intended to be “informative, factual, positive and empowering with the goal of encouraging women to think about their family history of breast and ovarian cancers.” How informative could a shorter-than-a-minute advertisement really be? It would be unreasonable to expect the same amount of information from a television advertisement that we can get from a physician or by conducting our own research about cancer. It is true that the genes Myriad offers testing for are only responsible for only about ten percent of all breast cancer, and if that information were purposefully hidden from prospective clients then that would be clearly unethical. Again however, the client has the responsibility to thoroughly research all his or her options before consenting to take Myriads test. He or she cannot expect a company to hand all the information they should seek from his or her physician. After all, it is their life that is at risk.

Caplan also points out that an adverse effect of taking Myriad’s test is that some insurance companies could drop coverage if a woman thinks she is at risk of breast or ovarian cancer. A health-benefits manager could decide that a woman with a cancer-causing gene should not be on their health plan. It is true that “there is not much in the way of legislation that protects women against this sort of genetic discrimination,” as Caplan says. But it is not Myriad that is dropping coverage or taking the women of the health plan. Besides, Myriad is not coercing anyone into taking its test. In fact, there are other options for women fearful of being at risk for cancer like yearly screenings. I believe that before we ban companies that give women the option, the simple choice, to take a test to learn about their genes, we should work to develop legislation to eradicate the “genetic discrimination” Caplan alludes to.

Women Should be Wary of Cancer Test Campaign