Tuesday, November 6, 2012

New DNA sequencing technologies are making it easier to know more about your entire genetic blueprint and your genetic risks for medical problems. In fact, reading your genes could eventually become as common as getting an X-ray, leading to individually tailored diagnoses and treatments.

However, while these new technologies offer much promise, they also raise many questions.

On Tuesday, Nov. 27, the University of Iowa Carver College of Medicine will host a Mini Medical School program, "Personal Genetic Information: Its Power, Promise, and Problems," featuring discussion of the research that will shape the future of personalized medicine and how that might change the care patients receive.

The program will be held from 6:30 to 8 p.m. in the Prem Sahai Auditorium in the Medical Education and Research Facility on the UI health sciences campus. Check-in and reception with a light meal will be from 5:30 to 6:30 p.m.

Speakers will include Richard Smith, M.D., director of the Iowa Institute of Human Genetics, and professor of otolaryngology at the Carver College of Medicine; Janet Williams, Ph.D., professor in the College of Nursing; and Sandra Daack-Hirsh, Ph.D., assistant professor in the College of Nursing.

Mini Medical School is free and open to the public. However, space is limited and registration is required. To register, visit online at medicine.uiowa.edu/minimedicalschool or call 877-MED-IOWA or 319-335-8886.