Mercies in Disguise

Mercies in Disguise

Top of Mind with Julie Rose

Grammar Rules, Space Poop, Mercies in Disguise

Episode: Grammar Rules, Space Poop, Mercies in Disguise

  • Mar 21, 2017 11:00 pm
  • 19:37 mins

Guest: Gina Kolata, New York Times Science and Medicine Reporter, author of “Mercies in Disguise: A Story of Hope, a Family’s Genetic Destiny, and the Science That Rescued Them” If a blood test could tell you that you would probably die of an incurable disease, would you get the test? Amanda Baxley faced that dilemma after watching her father, uncle, and grandfather succumb to a rare and fatal condition known as Gerstmann-Sträussler-Scheinker \[GSS], which has symptoms similar to Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s diseases.  As Amanda pondered getting the blood test to see if she, too, had the gene for GSS, some in her family begged her not to. Just think of the Pandora’s box such knowledge could unlock for a family with deep religious beliefs. . .