La France et la Grande-Bretagne à l’ère de la médecine génomique: Nouveaux défis éthiques en médecine de la reproduction (France and Great-Britain at the age of genomic medicine: New ethical challenges in reproductive medicine)

The announcement of the French Plan ‘France Médecine Génomique 2015’ demonstrates the will of the public authorities to make genomic medicine one of the flagships of public health and scientific research. It is against this backdrop that France announced its cooperation with Great Britain, one of the global leaders in genomics. The cooperation at an international level requires a common normative framework that addresses the new ethical challenges presented by genomic medicine. In order for such a framework to be adapted to different national contexts, it is important to identify and analyse the emerging ethical questions in general as well as within their specific national contexts. This article discusses the international implications of genomic medicine, and more precisely, the rise of international competitiveness in France. In a next step, the article explores the ethical implications of genomic medicine by taking the prenatal context as a case study. Finally, the article reflects on the way national contexts impact on the emerging ethical questions in France, as compared to Great Britain