Kit to spot serious illness early
A home testing kit that spots early signs of disease anywhere in the body could be available within 10 years, according to a leading scientist.
The simple blood test is being developed to allow people to screen themselves for life-threatening diseases, including a variety of cancers and dementias, before they develop any symptoms.
In many cases, a quick diagnosis significantly improves a patient’s chances of recovering from an illness.
The article goes on to say that spotting serious illnesses early could pose ethical issues. For example, finding out sooner that you have something for which there is no known treatment could just cause extra anxiety. Should people in this situation be told? How might it affect their jobs, insurance rates, etc? In short, do you think that DYI diagnosis would be a good thing?
casa azahar 
I generally want to know. It’s just my nature. To want to be able to plan ahead. But then, I’m not a big fan of surprises. One of my mottos could be an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.
Would I be more anxious if I found out I had an illness for which there was no cure?
Probably.
But I’d also be spending more of my time visiting Belize, Bali, Europe, my old haunts in Minnesota, and the gold country of the Sierras (etc.) than I would otherwise, too.
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oh I would definitely want to know about myself.
but I object to other people knowing about themselves 🙂
so if there is a ‘magic kit’ I want to be the only one with access
actually I think I want to be the person who decides who can have access to this ‘magic kit’
hmmm…. didn’t realise I had this control freak streak in me until now
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A lot depends as well on how definitive the diagnosis can be – for example if there are symptoms that it is picking up which could relate to multiple diseases, then I would think caution would be indicated!
I am reminded of Jerome K Jerome’s Three Men in a Boat, where J describes the folly of having read a medical encyclopedia.
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My daughter’s doctor needs one of those! He thought my daughter had gall stones and sent her for tests. What she had was a hernia which has now been fixed but she has to take things easy for some weeks.
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Well I think I would swap her – whilst a hernia is no fun, gallstones are definitely no joke either.
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Hey, alji! Long time no see. 🙂
I know I would want to know and it bothers me that doctors sometimes withhold information. I remember watching an interview with RD Laing and he talked about when his daughter was dying and how the doctors and family (except him) decided it would be ‘kinder’ to tell her she was going to recover. Laing said it was awful how they ‘stole her death from her’.
I would hate that too. Like, getting run over by a bus and having my last thoughts be something like, ‘maybe I can wait until tomorrow to buy milk’.
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