Machado-Joseph disease will be diagnosed by your doctor. You will be asked about your symptoms and if any other family members with similar problems. Your doctor will need to know about symptoms of close relatives, their age at onset and how quickly it progressed. The only way to confirm the suspected diagnosis is via a genetic test called SCA3. Some individuals who are symptom-free but have a parent with Machado-Joseph disease may wish to have the genetic test to find out if they are likely to develop the symptoms later in life. However, this is a very personal decision that is not taken without detailed consideration of the possible outcome.
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