Just one example of what a registry can do is the International Sheep Dog Society's control policy for Central Progressive Retinal Atrophy. Two decades later only three dogs in 2000 were diagnosed with the disease. The registry accomplished this by requiring that dogs entered in competition be examined. They published the results, whether clear or affected. They also reworked their fee structure so a pup whose parents had clear eye exams cost less to register than one with only one examined parent, and less still than one with neither parent examined.
Breed clubs tout themselves as guardians of all that is precious in their breeds.
Most, if not all, have codes of ethics. But codes of ethics tend to be toothless documents that get dusted off and waved about only when a club is accused of not having addressed an ethical issue. Codes of ethics ought to have sharp teeth, but this is not enough. And on funding research on those problems. No single entity will be more aware of what a breed's genetic drawbacks are than a breed club.