ABSTRACT
Bioethical standards in genetic counselling concern various concepts of medical care, including the quality of doctor-patient or counsellor-client relations, patient autonomy in decision-making, confidentiality, telling the truth and informed consent. To gain a better understanding of these ethical issues, we conducted a follow-up study. First, we followed 370 cases in Kyoto. For reasons of privacy, we sent them questionnaires by mail, with a response rate of one-third. The study showed us the great impact of new biotechnologies on the quality of human life (Fujiki 1983). In Nagoya and Fukui, in 1975 and 1981 respectively, we conducted follow-up surveys ten years after counselling. In both cases the response rate was about 50 percent, which, compared to the Kyoto data, is fairly good. The results of the two cases differed a little with regard to the appreciation of genetic counselling. In the
relatively urbanized areas, individuals did not overestimate genetic risk, whereas in the more rural areas, such as in Fukui, they did (see figure 2).
