In 1992, researchers predicted that it would soon be possible to identify people who carry the gene for a chronic degenerative disease, such as Alzheimer's and Huntington's disease, or even some types of cancer. No one believed that genetic research would reveal when people would develop this disease, but they were confident that, one day, we would be able to genetically identify people who would get it. However, in 1992, no one had the ability to say who would develop one of these terrible diseases, so there was no research on the effects of predictive genetic testing on people's emotions and well-being. No one can say whether predictive testing would be helpful or harmful. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an original essay In 1988, Canadian researchers launched the Canadian Collaborative Study on Predictive Testing. Its aim was to study patients who had been told they were at higher than normal risk for Huntington's disease. The researchers wanted to identify the short- and long-term psychological effects and whether they were positive or negative. Huntington's disease is genetic. It is an autosomal dominant disease, meaning a person must inherit a faulty gene to develop it. A person with a family history of Huntington's disease has a 50% chance of inheriting it. For this study, 208 people with a family history of Huntington's volunteered to participate, but only 135 were included. All participants were genetically tested and then assigned to one of three groups. Those who did not want to know the test results were assigned to the control group. Those who wanted to know and were told they were at high risk were assigned to the second group, while those who wanted to know and were told they had a minimal risk of contracting the disease were assigned to the third. All participants were given a series of tests to complete. The tests were the Beck Depression Inventory, the General Well-Being Scale, and the General Symptom Checklist 90-R Severity Index. The tests were administered again seven to 10 days after being informed of the risk, and then again after six and 12 months. Not surprisingly, the study found that low-risk people had the lowest levels of depression and anxiety. But the study also found that people who didn't want to know their test results suffered the greatest deterioration in their emotional well-being. They even got worse more than those who were told they were at high risk. Apparently, not knowing was worse than knowing. The uncertainty made their lives worse. In contrast, those who were told the risk was high were able to plan and take control of their lives. They felt that their fate was in their hands. The most important finding of this study was that the predictive tests did not have the harmful effects the researchers expected. Initially, there was a slight increase in depression and anxiety, but by day 7, their depression and anxiety levels, on average, were decreasing and, although they never reached the same low level as the no-risk group, they were significantly lower. below the levels of those who preferred to remain in the dark. However, it would be wrong to conclude from this study that there are no harmful effects of informing people that their tests indicate they are at risk for a deadly disease. The results reported in..