Whose DNA Is It Anyway?

Women got some of their genes back this year, thanks to the ACLU, women's health advocates and good doctors and researchers. The lawsuit filed in 2009 charged patents issued by the U.S. Patent Office to Myriad Genetics and the University of Utah Research Foundation for breast and ovarian cancer genes BRCA1 and BRCA2 are unconstitutional. The patents allowed Myriad and its minions to deny research and testing on mutations in these genes. And it allowed Myriad Genetics to charge for any test done to detect potentiality for developing breast cancer in women with family history. On March 29 a New York federal court ruled the patent invalid.

The National Cancer Institute, while gamely answering a question "How much does BRCA1 and BRCA2 testing cost?" does not mention anywhere that Myriad Genetics holds the patent on these genes. It answers: The cost for BRCA1 and BRCA2 mutation testing usually ranges from several hundred to several thousand dollars. Insurance policies vary with regard to whether or not the cost of testing is covered. People who are considering BRCA1 and BRCA2 mutation testing may want to find out about their insurance company’s policies regarding genetic tests.

The U.S. Patent Office has issued patents on 20% of the identified human genome. Perhaps the patents are held by genetic pharmaceutical companies that state "Our goal is to introduce new molecular diagnostic products that provide life-saving information, improve the quality of life, and save the healthcare system money," as Myriad claims.

But the company issued a press release the day after the NY court decision vowing to fight the patent decision. How this adds to women's quality of life, and saving the healthcare system money is anyone's guess.