Latest news with #DNAtesting
The Guardian
3 days ago
- Health
- The Guardian
Ethical questions surround the NHS sampling babies' DNA
Re your report (All babies in England to get DNA test to assess risk of diseases within 10 years, 20 June), the NHS plans to test the DNA of all babies to 'assess disease risk', in association with AI, having already sampled 100,000 newborns. The Department of Health and Social Care said that genomics and AI would be used to 'revolutionise prevention' and provide faster diagnoses and an 'early warning signal for disease'. In line with previous predictions, when individuals who submitted to a PCR test (which amplifies genetic material) during Covid-19 had their DNA sold for profit without their consent, infants now face their private, personal, biological data being captured, stored and used by who-knows-what corporations on behalf of the NHS. Not everyone wants to know what potential diseases they might suffer from in the future, especially if there is no known treatment. And for what purposes might it be used, other than 'prediction of disease risk'? Testing of new drugs? Testing of vaccines? Clearly an infant cannot give consent to its DNA being used for these purposes and research on children is unethical unless they stand to benefit. Will parents have the opportunity to give informed consent and can it even be informed if they are unaware of the many potential uses of the material? A global genomics market of $32.65bn in 2023 suggests that this is big business. Genomics England already makes available patients' genomic data to businesses. The association with AI additionally raises the spectre of surveillance in the form of digital IDs, incorporating not only biometric data, such as fingerprints, retinal scans and facial recognition, but potentially even the human genome itself. The NHS data of 57 million patients has already been used to train AI outside of the intended purpose. Will doctors recognise these risks and take steps to inform patients? Or will technology roll on regardless?Janet MenageRetired GP, Llanybydder, Ceredigion Have an opinion on anything you've read in the Guardian today? Please email us your letter and it will be considered for publication in our letters section.
Yahoo
4 days ago
- Yahoo
Justices side with Texas death row inmate seeking DNA testing to show he shouldn't be executed
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Supreme Court on Thursday ruled for a Texas death row inmate who is seeking DNA testing to show he should be ineligible for execution. The 6-3 decision in favor of Ruben Gutierrez gives him a potential path to have evidence tested that his lawyers say would help prove he was not responsible for the fatal stabbing of an 85-year-old woman during a home robbery decades ago. His lawyers have said there was no physical or forensic evidence connecting him to the killing and that he was not a major participant in the crime. Two others also were charged in the case. Gutierrez's lawyers argued that his case was similar to that of Rodney Reed, another longtime death row inmate in Texas who also won a round at the Supreme Court in his fight for DNA testing that he says would show he is innocent of murder. In July, the high court granted Gutierrez a stay of execution 20 minutes before he was to receive a lethal injection. Gutierrez was sentenced to death for the 1998 killing of Escolastica Harrison at her home in Brownsville in Texas' southern tip. Prosecutors said the killing of the mobile home park manager and retired teacher was part of an attempt to steal more than $600,000 that she had hidden in her home because of her mistrust of banks. Gutierrez had several previous execution dates in recent years that were delayed, including over issues related to having a spiritual adviser in the death chamber. In June 2020, Gutierrez was about an hour from execution when he received a stay from the Supreme Court.
Al Arabiya
4 days ago
- Al Arabiya
Justices Side With Texas Death Row Inmate Seeking DNA Testing To Show He Shouldn't Be Executed
The Supreme Court on Thursday ruled for a Texas death row inmate who is seeking DNA testing to show he should be ineligible for execution. The 6–3 decision in favor of Ruben Gutierrez gives him a potential path to have evidence tested that his lawyers say would help prove he was not responsible for the fatal stabbing of an 85-year-old woman during a home robbery decades ago. His lawyers have said there was no physical or forensic evidence connecting him to the killing and that he wasn't a major participant in the crime. Two others also were charged in the case. Gutierrez's lawyers argued that his case was similar to that of Rodney Reed–another longtime death row inmate in Texas who also won a round at the Supreme Court in his fight for DNA testing that he says would show he is innocent of murder. In July, the high court granted Gutierrez a stay of execution 20 minutes before he was to receive a lethal injection. Gutierrez was sentenced to death for the 1998 killing of Escolastica Harrison at her home in Brownsville, in Texas's southern tip. Prosecutors said the killing of the mobile home park manager and retired teacher was part of an attempt to steal more than $600,000 that she had hidden in her home because of her mistrust of banks. Gutierrez had several previous execution dates in recent years that were delayed, including over issues related to having a spiritual adviser in the death chamber. In June 2020, Gutierrez was about an hour from execution when he received a stay from the Supreme Court.
Washington Post
4 days ago
- Washington Post
Justices side with Texas death row inmate seeking DNA testing to show he shouldn't be executed
WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court on Thursday ruled for a Texas death row inmate who is seeking DNA testing to show he should be ineligible for execution. The 6-3 decision in favor of Ruben Gutierrez gives him a potential path to have evidence tested that his lawyers say would help prove he was not responsible for the fatal stabbing of an 85-year-old woman during a home robbery decades ago. His lawyers have said there was no physical or forensic evidence connecting him to the killing and that he was not a major participant in the crime. Two others also were charged in the case. Gutierrez's lawyers argued that his case was similar to that of Rodney Reed , another longtime death row inmate in Texas who also won a round at the Supreme Court in his fight for DNA testing that he says would show he is innocent of murder. In July, the high court granted Gutierrez a stay of execution 20 minutes before he was to receive a lethal injection. Gutierrez was sentenced to death for the 1998 killing of Escolastica Harrison at her home in Brownsville in Texas' southern tip. Prosecutors said the killing of the mobile home park manager and retired teacher was part of an attempt to steal more than $600,000 that she had hidden in her home because of her mistrust of banks. Gutierrez had several previous execution dates in recent years that were delayed, including over issues related to having a spiritual adviser in the death chamber . In June 2020, Gutierrez was about an hour from execution when he received a stay from the Supreme Court.
The Independent
4 days ago
- The Independent
Justices side with Texas death row inmate seeking DNA testing to show he shouldn't be executed
The Supreme Court on Thursday ruled for a Texas death row inmate who is seeking DNA testing to show he should be ineligible for execution. The 6-3 decision in favor of Ruben Gutierrez gives him a potential path to have evidence tested that his lawyers say would help prove he was not responsible for the fatal stabbing of an 85-year-old woman during a home robbery decades ago. His lawyers have said there was no physical or forensic evidence connecting him to the killing and that he was not a major participant in the crime. Two others also were charged in the case. Gutierrez's lawyers argued that his case was similar to that of Rodney Reed, another longtime death row inmate in Texas who also won a round at the Supreme Court in his fight for DNA testing that he says would show he is innocent of murder. In July, the high court granted Gutierrez a stay of execution 20 minutes before he was to receive a lethal injection. Gutierrez was sentenced to death for the 1998 killing of Escolastica Harrison at her home in Brownsville in Texas' southern tip. Prosecutors said the killing of the mobile home park manager and retired teacher was part of an attempt to steal more than $600,000 that she had hidden in her home because of her mistrust of banks. Gutierrez had several previous execution dates in recent years that were delayed, including over issues related to having a spiritual adviser in the death chamber. In June 2020, Gutierrez was about an hour from execution when he received a stay from the Supreme Court.
