Family secrets: Experiences and outcomes of participating in direct-to-consumer genetic relative-finder services.

ABSTRACT: In recent decades, genetic genealogy has become popular as a result of direct-to-consumer (DTC) genetic testing. Some DTC genetic testing companies offer genetic relative-finder (GRF) services that compare the DNA of consenting participants to identify genetic relatives among them and provide each participant a list of their relative matches. We surveyed a convenience sample of GRF service participants to understand the prevalence of discoveries and associated experiences. Almost half (46%) of the 23,196 respondents had participated in GRF services only for non-specific reasons that included interest in building family trees and general curiosity. However, most (82%) also learned the identity of at least one genetic relative. Separately, most respondents (61%) reported learning something n

SUBMITTER: Guerrini CJ 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8948156 | biostudies-literature | 2022 Mar

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature