Race Based Medicine a Form of Racism

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Race Based Medicine an Introduction In a society where one can get on a plane and be halfway around the world in a day, it is likely that everyone has encountered someone who looks different from them, whether it is skin color or other physical features. Some people of course look more alike than others and that is where skin color has been used as a tool to differentiate people from different parts of the world. However, this has led to many horrific situations of racism in the past that resulted in slavery and genocides throughout the world. Race as relating to humans can be defined as “a family, tribe, people, or nation belonging to the same stock” or “a class or kind of people unified by shared interests, habits, or characteristics” or even “a category of humankind that shares certain distinctive physical traits” (Merriam Webster Online). With all of these varying definitions of race it is easy to see how problems arise because of it. So what is race based medicine? Race based medicine is “the practice of using race or ethnic origin as a distinguishing feature of populations or individuals seeking health” (Cohn 552). This practice can be seen in the clinic, especially with certain diseases like sickle cell anemia which is more prevalent in black populations, cystic fibrosis which is increasingly common in people of north European descent, and finally Tay-Sachs disease which is highly associated with Ashkenazi Jewish populations (Collier 752). As with many topics there are people that have taken a stand on either side of the race based medicine debate. There are those scientists who are on the side that “understanding the unique patterns of genes across patient populations defined by race will help identify population... ... middle of paper ... ...ll 2006, p 497-499. Cohn, Jay N., The Use of Race and Ethnicity in Medicine: Lessons from the African-American Heart Failure Trial, J.L. Med. & Ethics, Race and Ethnicity, Fall 2006, p 552-554. Collier Roger, A race-based detour to personalized medicine, CMAJ. April 17, 2012 vol. 184 no. 7, p E351–E353. Collier Roger, Race and genetics in the doctor’s office, CMAJ. April 17, 2012 vol. 184 no. 7, p 752-753. Fine, Michael J., Ibrahim, Said A., Thomas, Stephen B., The Role of Race and Genetics in Health Disparities Research, American Journal of Public Health, Dec. 2005, Vol. 95, No. 12, p 2125-2128. "Race." Merriam-Webster.com. Merriam-Webster, n.d. Web. 4 May 2014. . Roberts DE. What's Wrong with Race-Based Medicine?: Genes, Drugs, and Health Disparities. Minnesota Journal of Law, Science & Technology. 2011;12(1):1-21.

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