Health Secretary Matt Hancock has discovered he is at higher risk of getting prostate cancer after taking a DNA test to determine the likelihood of developing diseases
The Health Secretary has discovered he is at higher risk of getting prostate cancer after taking a DNA test to determine the likelihood of developing diseases.
Matt Hancock will reveal the results in a speech at the Royal Society on Wednesday, raising ethical questions over genomic medicine.
He will call for a national debate to tackle some of the biggest issues facing DNA testing to allow patients to benefit from the technology as soon as possible.
Mr Hancock is expected to say: 'I recently underwent a predictive genomic test to better understand this technology and the ethical issues it presents.
'(The test) gives a sophisticated assessment of a person's likelihood to develop certain diseases based on their DNA.
'I have to admit, I was pretty nervous about getting the results.
'The good news is I'm pretty healthy - below average for most of the 16 diseases (I was tested for). I probably have my grandmother, who lived to a 103, to thank for that.
'But it wasn't all good news. I'm at higher risk of prostate cancer. My risk of prostate cancer by age 75 is almost 15%.'
Mr Hancock will say he was 'surprised and concerned' by the results but felt 'hugely relieved' when he realised that dying from the disease is 'highly preventable' if caught at an early stage and with regular checks.
'As a result, I've booked an appointment with my NHS GP to discuss the correct course of action,' he will tell delegates.
'I'm going to be on alert as I get older. And I'm going to make certain I don't miss any screening appointments in the future.
'I would never have found this out if it hadn't been for the genomic test.
'Tragically, so many men don't find out they have it, until it's too late. The truth is this test may have saved my life.'
The Health Secretary will
