The importance of preventative medicine in conjunction with modern day genetic studies

Genetic screening in the primary care setting is the future of preventative medicine. Genetic testing is an important medical tool for assessing various inheritable diseases, conditions, and cancers. The ability to diagnose patients before symptoms surface can help lessen the severity of symptoms and promote quality of life. However, genetic screening can cause psychological distress from the knowledge of test results, in some cases only serving to increase the risk of developing a condition due to stress. Genetic testing can be conducted anytime in life, even before birth. In this review, a compilation of genetic testing's definitions and boundaries, factors influencing an individual's test outcomes, and an overview of a wide variety of diseases, conditions and cancers were collected.