Previously Healthy? An ethical approach of incidental findings through imaging in research
Projectomschrijving
Medische beeldvorming in onderzoeksprojecten genereert vaak meer informatie dan dat de onderzoekers voor hun onderzoek nodig hebben. Deze informatie wordt vaak niet systematisch verwerkt, maar kan bij nazicht eerder onopgemerkte abnormaliteiten in beeld brengen, die mogelijk behandeld kunnen/zouden moeten worden. Het is niet eenvoudig om op een gepaste manier met zulke toevalsbevindingen om te gaan. Dit project beoogt een ethisch kader te ontwikkelen om adequaat met toevalsbevindingen om te gaan. Centraal in het project staat een omvangrijke stakeholder analyse, waarin de motivaties en belangen van de verschillende betrokken partijen (onderzoekers, artsen, proefpersonen en hun familieleden) in beeld worden gebracht.
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Auteur: Bunnik EM, van Bodegom L, Pinxten W, de Beaufort ID, Vernooij MW
Magazine: BMC Medical Ethics
Link: https://bmcmedethics.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12910-017-0168-y
Auteur: E.M. Bunnik, M.W. Vernooij
Magazine: European Journal of Epidemiology
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Samenvatting van de aanvraag
The use of non-invasive imaging in biomedical research generates massive amounts of high-quality data. Images that are made to provide researchers with the data that they need to realize their research objectives, however, may also provide large amounts of additional information. This information may or may not be reviewed by a qualified radiologist, and may reveal previously undetected abnormalities that are of potential relevance for the health of individual research subjects. Such information is often designated as an ‘incidental finding’ (IF), which is most commonly defined as ‘a finding concerning an individual research participant that has potential health or reproductive importance and is discovered in the course of conducting research but is beyond the aims of the study' (Wolf, 2008) or ‘observations of potential clinical significance unexpectedly discovered in healthy subjects or in patients recruited to (brain) imaging research studies and unrelated to the purpose or variables of the research’ (Illes, 2006). IF raise important ethical issues. What counts as an IF? What results should be disclosed? Should subjects always be told? What do they (not) want to know? What do they expect? Should researchers screen images systematically, also beyond the purpose of research? And can research always be adequately distinguished from clinical diagnosis and/or therapy? In a research climate where the use and quality of imaging is increasing exponentially, it is important to address these ethical questions in depth, with adequate stakeholder representation and well-generated empirical data on the practices, motivations, interests and concerns of researchers, research participants, and other stakeholders. In addition, particular groups that are exceptionally vulnerable in research deserve specific attention, including minors and elderly. The current discussion of ethical aspects related to IF through imaging in research is far from exhaustive. Although a number of issues have (partly) been explored, much work remains to be done. Very few data about the concerns, motivations, and interests of researchers and research subjects exist. By consequence, it is not clear whether the current ethical debate truly represents the interests and concerns of research subjects, researchers, and others involved. Further research is thus needed to identify and fill the gaps in the current discussion, so that both theoretical and practical approaches can be provided with a solid empirical ground. Against this background, we will develop an ethical framework as a practical and ethically sound approach of IF through imaging in research, in close collaboration with research practitioners and research subjects. We will take the necessary actions to ensure that the relevant interests, concerns, and values of different stakeholders and the society at large are appropriately considered. To address the current lack of empirical data in this field of enquiry, we will generate new data by conducting semi-structured interviews and focus group discussions. In addition, input from highly qualified experts in this field of enquiry will be organized. We will recruit the participants for the interviews and focus group discussions (including researchers, research subjects and other actors involved) within the two population-based studies hosted at the ErasmusMC Rotterdam. These studies are worldwide unique both in size and in the level of high quality non-invasive imaging that is applied. As such, we will be enabled to conduct pioneering research at a very high level and with a broad international relevance. The main result of this project will be an ethical framework for dealing with IF through imaging in research, in which the views of relevant key-stakeholders (including researchers, research subjects and their families, sponsors, policy makers, and ethicists) are represented and in which major gaps in the currently available empirical data are filled. Given the high prevalence of IF in various fields of enquiry, this framework will also be relevant for various scientific fields other than radiology (e.g. genomics research, prenatal diagnostics).