Ethical aspects of preimplantation genetic diagnoses and Brazilian law

Abstract

Advances in genetics have enabled research into preimplantation genetic diagnosis, leading to
worldwide debates on ethical issues. In Brazil, the topic is only covered by resolutions of the Federal
Council of Medicine, with no specific legislation, which unites medical genetics and biolaw. The objective
of this study is to survey the ethical implications of this technique around the world and how Brazilian
legislation deals with these issues. An integrative literature review was conducted on SciELO and Virtual
Health Library databases, considering works published between January 2012 and December 2022.
The following descriptors were used, in the English and Portuguese languages: “preimplantation
diagnosis”/“diagnóstico pré-implantação” and “ethics”/“ética.” Despite the ethical debates, it was
observed that the legal gaps on the subject are yet to be integrated to guide the use of the technique
along paths that are not tied to the parents’ individualistic reasons.