Challenge of genetic testing tackled at YIW

One blood test can save future lives but at the same time can open up questions with Jewish legal and emotional ramifications.

At a recent Young Israel of Woodmere sisterhood event, Rabbi Aaron Glatt, MD, executive vice president and chief administrative officer of Mercy Medical Center and assistant to the rabbi of the YIW, and Leah Fried, MS Certified Genetic Counselor, discussed the necessity and ramifications of genetic testing.

Both spoke to a crowd of 50 women at the home of Anne Pasternak, presenting an overview of the practical and future theoretical issues of genetic testing.

The focus was primarily on pre-marital genetic testing for compatibility, so that the prospective couple will “hopefully have a family not exposed to the 19 genetic diseases” currently being tested for. Glatt stressed the importance of “education of young people to be aware of this, including the halachic (Jewish legal) ramifications.”

The event covered “various genetic related illnesses, practical and theoretical situations, what diseases it makes sense to test for, including if it’s always useful or sometimes dangerous to know,” Rabbi Glatt said.

He recommended that individuals “consult with their Rav and physician as appropriate because there aren’t always clear cut answers.”

Rabbi Glatt emphasized the importance of testing “before entering into a relationship, before the relationship becomes emotionally significant. There are a lot of halachic problems if genetic issues are only identified once there is a relationship, or after marriage.”

He noted there are two ways of finding out genetic information: the “closed way” or through “open testing.”

The closed way is that used by the organization Dor Yeshorim, where an individual submits for a blood test for a subsidized fee and receives an identification number keyed to the individual’s phone number and birth date but is not informed of his (or her) genetic risk factors. When a shidduch (prospective match) is suggested, both ID numbers and dates of birth are entered into the automated system and a return call from the organization indicates if the match is genetically compatible. The process is thus anonymous.