Some of the pros include providing a sense of relief to parents who are concerned and uncertain of the possibility of their child having a disorder (if the test is negative), if it is bad news, at least the parents can be prepared mentally as to what they can be faced with. Early detection is key, if detected early, a plan can be set in place as to the future doctor's appointments, accommodations for the child, and possible surgeries if needed to plan ahead. Also, if diagnosed early, appropriate treatment can be given to the fetus before and after birth if necessary (Lea, Williams & Donahue, 2005, pp. 234-240). Genetic conditions often run in the family, defective genes may be carried from generation to generation whether physically present or not. Information gathered from testing can also help members of the family to be on high alert when planning for children of their own (Kuehn, 2008, pp. 1637-1639). The "Prenatal Genome Testing Sparks Debate" article describes another pro although difficulty to consider, as the parents having the choice to terminate the pregnancy if they feel that the responsibility of their baby's condition is too much (2008). On the other hand, some of the cons include creating anxiety for the parents because of the testing and the results to come. But as mentioned above, one of the problems with genetic and prenatal testing is that it gives false results. The person has to know going into the test that there is a possibility that a negative test can turn out to be positive and that a positive test can turn out to be negative (Schmitz, 2013, pp. 357-364). Another con is the view on terminating the pregnancy if indeed the child has an abnormality. Especially religious groups feel that regardless of chromosomal abnormalities, terminating is not right. This can also cause trouble between the mother and father as well (Schmitz, 2013, pp. 357-364). As mentioned above, the cost of…
