Letters to the Editor
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At Least Medical Histories
I'm an adoptee, and as I get older, I find it more frustrating to have no medical history. (People usually just think of mothers when it comes to medical history, but paternal history is just as important.) Just about every month, some medical story talks about the importance of knowing your family medical history - this month, it was MRI's in addition to mammograms if you have a "family medical history" of breat cancer. I try not to be paranoid, but every time I hear a story like this, I think about my family medical history form, which says "UNKNOWN" in answer to every question.
I can understand the reluctance of sperm donors to come forward (especially since the law is murky in this area) but I think it's only fair to provide updated medical histories for the children involved.
There are other intangibles too - I've often wondered what my ethnic background was, or whether I got my nose or my premature grey hair from some relative - things people who aren't adopted take for granted - but it's the medical questions that concern me as I approach my 40's and 50's.