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FAMILY FIGHTS TO BE TESTED
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 | Family fights to be tested |
| Video files are available. Download the latest Quicktime plug-in to view them. |
Supported by the Community Health Council, the Kaye family are campaigning against their local Health Trust so that Ryan, the youngest member of their family, can be tested for a genetic disorder.
Annie Kaye, 16, has already been diagnosed with Friedreich’s ataxia and her brother Ryan, 14, could also have inherited this disorder. However, doctors have told Ryan that it was not hospital policy to test children under 16.
Ryan feels he has a right to know what the future holds for him and is determined to be tested. Therefore, he and his family are fighting the local Health Trust to have this decision reversed. "I want to be tested so that I can plan my future" says Ryan, "what if I've planned my life as an able-bodied person and find out that I'm wrong?"
The Kaye family are no strangers to controversy. In 1964, Barbara Kaye, then Barbara Holland, took the Football Association to the High Court for excluding her from Junior League games on account of her gender. She narrowly lost, but perhaps, on this occasion, she and her family may well succeed.
| Character Profiles | |
Annie
Kaye |
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Barbara
Kaye |
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Ryan
Kaye |
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Jennifer
Kaye |
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Mark
Kaye |
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| Background Information | |
| What are genes? | |
| Inherited genetic disorders | |
| New Genetics | |
| The Human Genome Project | |
| Testing and screening | |
| Gene therapy | |
| Freidreich's ataxia | |
| People and genetics | |
| Issues and concerns | |
| Web Resources | |
| The Gift | |
| Synopsis | |
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Nicola Baldwin Writing The Gift |
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Download the script |