The second goal of 23andMe: using customer’s real health data later

Esther Dyson‘s honest post on getting the genotype-health risk correlation statistics right on The Spittoon blog: What You Can Do for 23andMe (and Future Generations)

To learn more, researchers need to collect thousands of genetic profiles – and the health data connected with each of them – to find correlations between the two. That leads to a second goal of 23andMe – to collect a large database of genetic information and then come back to you over time with invitations to provide specific health data and participate in research.

We’re not asking you to do this for purely altruistic reasons – either on our part or on yours. We’re a profit-seeking company, even though our founders and employees – and directors! – all share the vision of better understanding of everyone’s genomic make-up. As for you, the research results your data help produce could translate directly into benefits for you, or at least for your children, grandchildren and friends.

Now imagine a world (2009?) in which 23andMe genotype profiles could be uploaded to your Google Health profile with one click (see picture).

Anyway, Dyson’s argument is using the “intergenerational justice” card, that is related to life extension technologies too. Dyson, an information exhibitionist also shares an interesting correspondence between her and her brother George Dyson on the growing health genomics information demand of people:

Family related link: The domesticated biotech future according to Freeman Dyson