Attitudes towards glaucoma genetic risk assessment in unaffected individuals

Integrating polygenic risk scores (PRS) into healthcare has the potential to stratify an individuals risk of glaucoma across a broad population. Glaucoma is the most common cause of irreversible blindness worldwide, therefore effective screening for glaucoma endorsed by the population is highly important. This study assessed the attitude of unaffected individuals towards PRS testing for glaucoma, and sought to identify factors associated with interest in testing. We surveyed 418 unaffected individuals including those with a first-degree relative with glaucoma (n=193), those who had a recent eye examination (n=117), and general members of the community (n=108). Overall, 71.3% indicated an interest in taking a polygenic risk test for glaucoma. Interest was more likely in those who believed glaucoma to be a severe medical condition (OR 14.58, 95%CI (1.15-185.50), p=0.039), those concerned about developing glaucoma (OR 4.37, 95%CI (2.32-8.25), p<0.001), those with an intention to take appropriate measures regarding eye health (OR 2.39, 95%CI (1.16-4.95), p=0.019), and those preferring to know if considered to be at-risk or not (OR 4.52, 95%CI (2.32-8.83), p<0.001). These findings represent a valuable assessment of general public interest in glaucoma polygenic risk testing, which will be integral to the implementation and uptake of novel PRS based tests into clinical practice.