Approximately one in 25 carries genes for Tay-Sachs Disease, a progressive deterioration of the nervous system that leads to death, usually by age 8. And one in 90 Ashkenazi Jews carries genes for Niemann-Pick Disease, also a nervous system condition, in which most victims die by age 3. Testing detects more than 95 percent of carriers of the NPD genes. That's the same lesson Eckstein delivers when she speaks to women at Hadassah meetings. Skolnick, when she's not working at Morristown Memorial Hospital, delivers a similar message at high schools, hoping that the more information women have, the better informed they'll be to decide if they want to have prenatal genetic screening.
Prospective parents can determine genetic risks through testing.
An initial blood test indicates whether both parents have the same non-working genes that indicate a disease. If so, a pregnant woman may wish to get a sampling of the developing placenta or an amniocentesis to see if the infant will be affected. Skolnick is concerned that only half of all pregnant women opt for genetic testing. I speak Hebrew. But I do hope that I can communicate with people who are non-Jewish, too.