Professor Brenda Wilson
Partner Investigator
Brenda is based in the Faculty of Medicine, University of Ottawa, Canada. She trained as a doctor and worked in public health in Scotland before moving into research about genetics. Her main interest is in working out how to use all of the discoveries in genetic science in ways that are beneficial. This means asking questions about whether new, genome-based tests and technologies actually work, whether they make a difference, and how we actually make sure they're used well. This includes the question of whether they are a good use of our precious health care resources. Brenda believes the starting point to this research always has to be what real people think – about how they value genetic information – and their concerns, and how it might make a difference in their own lives. For example, her recent work in Canada suggests that using concrete examples, people are very adept at working out whether new genetic information would make a difference to their own health decision making.