Antiracism Efforts in Biomedicine

We want to recognize faculty member Greg Feero MD, PhD for his work as lead author on an important editorial published simultaneously on March 12 and March 13 in JAMA, Genetics in Medicine, American Journal of Human Genetics, Human Genetics and Genomics Advances, and Nature Genetics. The work was highlighted in a story by the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine (NASEM). The editorial’s authors, a group of biomedical journal editors, offer guidance on how researchers should use race, ethnicity, and ancestry classification in genetics and genomics research publications in order to support implementation of recommendations of the NASEM presented in their report Using Population Descriptors in Genetics and Genomics Research. The report offers a framework for reshaping how populations within genetics studies are labeled in order to support scientific accuracy and move away from labels that are social rather than scientific constructs. The efforts of Dr. Feero and other thought leaders in genetics and genomics research are a meaningful step in accelerating the abolition of race-based medicine; we applaud this remarkable and important work.