What happens when you grow up not knowing your family medical history?
An adopted woman shares her traumatic experience of trying to access her biological family's medical history through bureaucratic channels. She highlights the emotional toll of receiving sensitive, life-altering information without proper support or context.
Why it matters
It underscores the critical need for better support systems and transparency in how sensitive medical and personal data is handled for adopted individuals.
Figure caption, Aaliyah: "Every time you go to the GP when they ask for family history, you have to say you don't know"
When Aaliyah found a lump in her breast, she was anxious to find out if she had inherited an increased risk of cancer.
But because she had been removed from her biological parents at the age of seven months and later adopted, she had no way of accessing her family medical history.
"Not knowing anything about yourself genetically is terrifying," says the 26-year-old, "you can't even begin to imagine it."
The lump turned out to be non-cancerous, but it was one of many occasions when she found herself unable to answer questions about her biological family's health.
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