A Ruling on Gene Patents In her Op-Ed article about the Association for Molecular Pathology v. Myriad Genetics case, Eleonore Pauwels refers to "the Supreme Court's unanimous ruling last Thursday, barring patents on human genes" ("Our Genes, Their Secrets," nytimes.com, June 19). Her article doesn't note that the court broadly affirmed the eligibility of patent protection for synthetic DNA and underscored the importance of methods patents for the development of genetic tests. We agree with Ms. Pauwels that any genetic database used for clinical purposes should be regulated. We believe that medical decisions based on the interpretation of genetic data are crucial to the well-being of patients, and we know of numerous examples in which the clinical use of unregulated public databases has jeopardized patient safety or privacy. Patients alone should ultimately have the right to decide whether their personal genetic data is deposited into public or government databases. At Myriad, our policies emphasize patient privacy and safety through our regulated laboratory process. PETER D. MELDRUM President and Chief Executive Myriad Genetics Salt Lake City, June 19, 2013