Before Birth

Elizabeth Ettorre is Professor of Sociology at the University of Liverpool, UK

• Contents: A European project on the development of prenatal screening, Elizabeth Ettorre; Prenatal diagnosis in the lay press and professional journals in Finland, Greece and The Netherlands, Michaela Laurén, Konstantinos Petrogiannis, Eleni Valassi-Adam and Tjeerd Tymstra; Review of policy, law and ethics, Konstantinos Petrogiannis, Tjeerd Tymstra, Piia Jallinoja and Elizabeth Ettorre; Experts’ views on prenatal screening and diagnosis in Greece, The Netherlands, England and Finland, Elizabeth Ettorre; Physicians’ opinions of genetic screening: comparisons in Finland and Greece, Eleni Valassi-Adam, Elina Hemminki, Hanna Toivianen and Christos Maragos; Prenatal diagnosis and screening in Europe: attitudes, practices and opinions of midwifes, Loes Kooij, Rachel Grellier, Fani Pechlivani and Hanna Toivianen; Women’s decision-making and experiences of prenatal Down’s screening, Päivi Santalahti, Konstantinos Petrogiannis and Tjeerd Tymstra; Whose fault is it?: shame and guilt for the genetic defect, Thalia Dragonas; Prenatal genetic screening: the Finnish experience, Arja R. Aro and Piia Jallinoja; Living with a congenital condition: the views of adults who have cystic fibrosis, sickle cell anaemia, Down’s syndrome, spina bifida or thalassaemia, Priscilla Alderson, Penny Scott and Neelam Thapar; It’s like peeking into a Christmas gift and then deciding if you want it or not, Michaela Laurén; Eugenics: what is in a word?, Elani Valassi-Adam.

'...this book offers a good introduction to some of the social, ethical, cultural and policy issues related to the development of prenatal screening in Europe and will be of interest to academics, practitioners, studens and policymakers who want or need to know more about this area.' Medical Sociology News '...there is much to be found in the book which is of universal interest, and it will surely be an interesting reference for many researchers from a variety of disciplines.' Medicine, Health Care and Philosophy