There is a seminar running on autism on the Awares site today 4th Oct.
You can put your autism questions to Anthony Bailey, Rita Jordan, Dawn
Wimpory and Glenys Jones
Its on Autism Cymru' s website, Awares.
http://www.awares.org/pkgs/seminar_centr...=§ion=
I have posted a question to Professor Antony Bailey-
What do you think of the possibilty of pre natal screening being developed and used for autism, in the same way as it is for Downs Syndrome?
I am deeply concerned about this issue, I have AS and so does my son, I feel that autism is genetic and such a test could risk autistics being wiped out. The research of such groups as Cure Autism Now who ask for cure or prevention, and their view of autism as an epidemic is concerning also.
Here is my reply from Professor Bailey-
Author : Anthony Bailey, 4 Oct 2004 15:56
Dear Amy.
Thank you for your very important question. It is important to differentiate between possible future tests for some or all of the genes that predispose to ASD's and a test for the disorder itself. All the available genetic evidence suggests that there is not a one to one relationship between inheriting susceptibility genes and developing ASD. In other words a genetic test would not be able to tell us whether an individual would be severely or mildly affected or not affected at all. Clearly there is a possibility that there may be some genetic variants of ASD that may be associated with more severe diificulties or perhaps with the development of epilepsy, but we will not know that until the genes have been identified. Once that has been achieved the next problem will be to identify any factors that influence whether an ASD does develop and if so its severity. Once scientists have established some of those basic facts we will be in a position to know whether a 'test' is feasible. It will then be the task of all interested parties to decide whether that is a route that society should decide to go down.
Best wishes
Tony
"Interested Parties" will not include people with an ASD. The only "interested parties" opinions that are going to be considered will be the parents, and possibly the government's position.
The progress of science is going to continue on until they *do* have a test. The answer you are getting, and will continue to get, is "we can't test for that right now, so it's not a problem".
My expectation is that ASD's will no longer exist within 200 years from now.
I have visited this seminar but as it keeps refreshing every minute it is almost impossible to read or participate in. However, the eventual reply to Amy's post was very non-committal and I agree about the prospect of 'no asd's in the next 200 yrs'. I will try to ask a question there and get a more honest reply. I was also irritated by their definition of autistic people as being unable to relate to others in a meaningful way-what complete nonsense. Why do they insist on these statements when they are so obviously inaccurate ? Where are all the positive posts? :evil:
The constant refreshing is very poor, I wonder if there could be another one using a different format, and for people who are actually on the spectrum, not just interested parties.
This may be a better option for many of us who cant get to conferences cos of distance, etc.
I have posted a new thread in this seminar - Where is the Autistic Voice ? but have not received any replies so far. I don't usually go on about my achievements/abilities in such a blatant manner (as in the seminar thread post) but I feel it is necessary in the context of some sites/discussions where the emphasis is on the negative aspects of autism.
I have also replied to Mr.Bailey (Amy's thread) as follows:
What is your personal view on this 'very important question' ? As I see it,as long as the narrative of autism is depicted in terms that encode it firmly within the genre of 'tragedy' - I have read reports from conferences where autism has been referred to as 'a plague', 'a tumour', 'the cancer of neurological disorders' - then the 'interested parties' that you mention are more likely to view autism as something to be cured / eradicated. This negative discourse on autism is also very likely to influence prospective parents and result in an increase in the abortion of autistic people; I think it is naive to assume otherwise. Do you agree that the emplottment of the autism narrative needs to be actively tackled with an increased emphasis on the positive aspects of ASD's ? Also, I do not think we, as a society, can afford to ignore this issue whilst the science is being developed up to the point when it is known that a 'test is feasible'. What do you think ?
I will get back here when ( ? ) I receive a reply...
Thrillseeker.