title: Public Views on Genetics and Genetic Testing: A Survey of the General Public in Belgium.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To explore the views of the Belgian public on various topics surrounding genetics and genetic testing (GT).
  
  
  METHODS
  A written questionnaire was administered to visitors of the annual cartoon festival in Knokke-Heist, Belgium, during the summer of 2014. The main theme of the festival was challenges and progress in human genetics and it was attended by more than 100,000 visitors.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The survey was completed by 1182 respondents, resulting in a demographically diverse sample with a mean age of 48.5 years. Our respondents expressed moderate interest in predictive GT, with 39.1% willing to learn about their predisposition to diseases through GT and 49.5% indicating interest in getting tested exclusively for treatable/preventable diseases. We observed higher interest in GT for reproductive purposes, such as preconception screening for recessive disorders (53.8%) and prenatal GT (60.7%). A substantial minority (46.4%) of the respondents were worried that GT could further stigmatize people with disabilities, while 39.7% believed that carrier screening for recessive diseases would lead to an inferior image of people affected by them.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Paying due attention to the attitudes, beliefs, and concerns of the general public is important to ensure ethically sound and socially acceptable implementation of new genetic technologies.
authors.affiliation: 1 Department of Public Health and Primary Care, Centre for Biomedical Ethics and Law, University of Leuven, Leuven, Belgium .
authors.forename: Davit
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Chokoshvili
authors.affiliation: 1 Department of Public Health and Primary Care, Centre for Biomedical Ethics and Law, University of Leuven, Leuven, Belgium .
authors.forename: Carmen
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Belmans
authors.affiliation: 1 Department of Public Health and Primary Care, Centre for Biomedical Ethics and Law, University of Leuven, Leuven, Belgium .
authors.forename: Roxanne
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Poncelet
authors.affiliation: 1 Department of Public Health and Primary Care, Centre for Biomedical Ethics and Law, University of Leuven, Leuven, Belgium .
authors.forename: Sofie
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Sanders
authors.affiliation: 1 Department of Public Health and Primary Care, Centre for Biomedical Ethics and Law, University of Leuven, Leuven, Belgium .
authors.forename: Deborah
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Vaes
authors.affiliation: 1 Department of Public Health and Primary Care, Centre for Biomedical Ethics and Law, University of Leuven, Leuven, Belgium .
authors.forename: Danya
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Vears
authors.affiliation: 2 Centre for Medical Genetics Ghent, University Hospital Ghent , Ghent, Belgium .
authors.forename: Sandra
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Janssens
authors.affiliation: 1 Department of Public Health and Primary Care, Centre for Biomedical Ethics and Law, University of Leuven, Leuven, Belgium .
authors.forename: Isabelle
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Huys
authors.affiliation: 1 Department of Public Health and Primary Care, Centre for Biomedical Ethics and Law, University of Leuven, Leuven, Belgium .
authors.forename: Pascal
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Borry
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D001530:Belgium; D005260:Female; D020022:Genetic Predisposition to Disease; D005820:Genetic Testing; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires
keywords: attitudes; genetic testing; questionnaire; survey