[Interactions between genetics and environment].
From a scientific point of view, the idea that genes exert an important role in explaining human pathology has gained much popularity in recent decades. However, according to Stephen Jay Gould, the "genetic fallacy" has been repeatedly used to avoid environmental action. In the case of occupational cancer, genetic screening of workers for their susceptibility to the action of chemical carcinogens, on the basis of "metabolic polymorphisms", would be unacceptable because of racial discrimination, related to uneven racial distribution of most polymorphisms, for example, 90% of Africans and 10% of Asians have the "slow" acetylator genotype. Therefore, not only technical and scientific aspects of genetic susceptibility to cancer, but also ethical and social implication have to be considered.
Vineis
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Servizio di Epidemiologia dei Tumori, A.O. S. Giovanni Battista, Torino.
D000368:Aged; D002274:Carcinogens, Environmental; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D016001:Confidence Intervals; D004198:Disease Susceptibility; D004777:Environment; D004992:Ethics, Medical; D005260:Female; D005820:Genetic Testing; D016481:Helicobacter Infections / Q000150:complications; D016480:Helicobacter pylori; D006801:Humans; D008228:Lymphoma, Non-Hodgkin / Q000209:etiology; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009369:Neoplasms / Q000139:chemically induced / Q000209:etiology* / Q000235:genetics*; D009784:Occupational Diseases / Q000139:chemically induced* / Q000517:prevention & control; D016273:Occupational Exposure; D011110:Polymorphism, Genetic; D044469:Racial Groups; D012907:Smoking / Q000009:adverse effects; D013274:Stomach Neoplasms / Q000209:etiology; D014376:Tuberculosis / Q000209:etiology
D002274:Carcinogens, Environmental