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Given the vast and imprecise horizon of expectations associated with predictive medicine and the dilemmas posed by the emergence of genomics in pediatric oncology, it seems relevant to call upon the points of view of patients and their families to support our understanding of the issues involved in genetic investigation and to identify ways of responding to them in concrete terms. This article reports on the protocol and the results of a qualitative investigation gathering separately children and parents in focus groups stimulating their imagination. The participants were invited to project themselves into fictitious situations from which they could develop their reflections without having to mobilize their personal experience. Diversions through imagination consisted of: 1/ putting oneself in the place of another person (sick child, parent, doctor), rather than exploring the myths and symbols around genetics as such; 2/ making a collage describing the return of genetic results. Imagination appears to be a relevant tool to make young patients and their parents think about complex and oft-neglected ethical issues, and ultimately to contribute to the definition of the modalities of informed consent. However, there are limitations specific to focus group methodology, such as the reluctance to express opinions in a collective context, the theme studied, or the profile of the participants. This experience allows us to glimpse how imagination could allow the greatest number of people to participate in reflections on ethical issues.