Advantages and disadvantages of making use of the offer of carrier screening tests

Making use of the offer of carrier screening tests:

• allows you to find out whether or not you carry the defective gene associated with any one of the screened disorders
• provides a sense of relief from uncertainty to an overwhelming majority of individuals or couples wondering if they are at risk of having a child with any one of these disorders
• allows a small number of couples to know that they have a 1 in 4 (25%) chance of having a child with one of these disorders
• allows free and informed decisions regarding family planning or pregnancy care

• Waiting for and getting test results can be stressful experiences for some individuals or couples.
• The result may entail difficult decisions regarding family planning or pregnancy care. This is especially true when both people in a couple are carriers of the same defective gene. The couple then has a 1 in 4 (25%) chance of having a child with the disease associated with this gene, for each pregnancy.