Blood Matters: From Inherited Illness to Designer Babies, How the World and I Found Ourselves in the Future of the Gene (Hardcover)

by Masha Gessen (Author) "I spent the day of August 21, 1992, driving to a mountainous desert town whose name, in the scorching heat and fine dust, was a..." (more)
Key Phrases: maple syrup disease, preventive mastectomy, tame rats, Blood Matters, Dor Yeshorim, United States (more...)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly
This energetic but unfocused account awkwardly merges several strands: the author's experience with the threat of breast cancer, discussions of genetic inheritance in Jewish families and a look at how the ability to test for genetic predispositions to various diseases is changing lives. With a family history of breast cancer, journalist Gessen (Dead Again: The Russian Intelligentsia After Communism) was not surprised to learn she had inherited a deleterious mutation in the BRCA1 gene, one of two genes known to be linked to breast and ovarian cancer. The BRCA1 mutation was first discovered in Jewish women, a compact population with a higher-than-average breast cancer rate. Gessen describes her narrow options, with nondirective counseling steering her toward prophylactic removal of her breasts and ovaries. Then she jumps the track to talk about Dr. Henry Lynch, who, in 1966, first suggested that predisposition to cancer might be hereditary. Gessen also covers Huntington's disease, maple syrup disease among Old Order Mennonites, eugenics and how a genetic testing program is affecting marital choices for some Orthodox Jews. Gessen covers a fair amount of ground, but in a haphazard fashion. The book's strongest parts are on genetics and heredity in the Jewish community. (Apr.)
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From Booklist
Life in the age of the human genome, with its promise of custom medicines and forewarnings of hereditary diseases, may appear to be on the road to utopia. But after Gessen learned that a gene mutation predisposed her to breast and ovarian cancer, she found that road slippery, that utopia farther away than it had seemed. Thirty-seven, with an adopted six-year-old son and a biological two-year-old daughter, she faced decisions about elective double radical mastectomy plus surgical removal of her ovaries. Before deciding, she did what any respectable journalist would do: researched the subject to learn all the options and their consequences and, she hoped, to find somebody who would make her decision easier—that is, decide for her. On the one hand, she succeeded by penning this report on the field of genetics, its benefits and pitfalls. On the other, she ended up having to make her own decision. She gives us an informative read, though she found no easy way. --Donna Chavez

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 336 pages
• Publisher: Harcourt; 1 edition (April 1, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0151013624
• ISBN-13: 978-0151013623
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6.4 x 1.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #651,521 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The future of genetic testing and how it will shape our health, September 1, 2008

By	M. Debor (Orange County, CA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

I find this book well written, informative, and engaging. I, too, recently tested positive for the BRCA-1 gene mutation and read the book in my research stages prior to my bilateral mastectomy. Contrary to Jessica Queller's personal account of her genetic testing and research, followed by the decision to have a double mastectomy, this book focuses much more on the genetic information available today and the power of knowledge. 'Blood Matters' showed me that genetic knowledge can help me make decisions that influence my health and that many other people and cultures have embraced the advantage of genetic testing in a positive way. I felt alienated and lonely when I tried explaining the power of genetic testing to some of my family members who are residing in Europe. Most of the family members that I approached had never heard of the genetic test and were uncomfortable talking about the subject. Reading "Blood Matters" gave me the feeling that I am part of a community, of a movement much larger than my personal experiences and it showed me that we are only in the beginning stages of what genetic testing can do to improve our health.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Perceptive and well written, June 30, 2008

By	Fiona E. Place (Sydney, Australia) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This book is one of the few books on genetic screening that gives you a feel for the topic. It does this through personal journey as well as investigative journalism blending the two so as to explore the implications and inevitable consequences of genetic screening. It covers cancer, huntingtons and other rare hereditary conditions and illuminates the burdens and reliefs the current knowledges can provide. It is easy to read, compelling and wise. My only criticism would be the chapter on prenatal screening - this was not as well thought through and lacked the wisdom of the rest of the book. All in all it is a considerable achievement and I would highly recommend it to the general reader as well as those with a particular interest in medicine.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars How genetic information is reshaping the decision-making process, June 20, 2008

By	Midwest Book Review (Oregon, WI USA) - See all my reviews

BLOOD MATTERS: FROM INHERITED ILLNESS TO DESIGNER BABIES, HOW THE WORLD AND I FOUND OURSELVES IN THE FUTURE OF THE GENE tells of genetics using the author's foundation of experience as the starting point. In 2004 she was told she had a mutation that predisposed her to ovarian and breast cancer: the problem proved what to do with this knowledge. BLOOD MATTERS explores how genetic information is reshaping the decision-making process - and how these new decisions are reshaping knowledge of self. Any general interest lending library strong in health references will find this an excellent lend - as well as college-level collections strong in genetic health books.

Diane C. Donovan
California Bookwatch