By Bio-IT World staff
Oct. 9, 2008 | Microsoft, Navigenics and Affymetrix are joining forces with the Scripps Translational Science Institute (STSI) to launch a novel research study to assess the behavioral impact of personal genetic testing.
The goal of the study is to discover if participating in personal genomic testing improves people’s health by encouraging them to make positive lifestyle decisions and medical monitoring. The study will offer genetic scans by Navigenics to up to 10,000 employees, friends and family of the nonprofit Scripps Health system in San Diego and monitor participants’ changes in behavior for two decades.
Collaborating in and sponsoring the study are personal genomics firm Navigenics; Affymetrix, the microarray pioneer that supplies the genotyping platform used by Navigenics in its Health Compass service; and Microsoft.
“Genome scans give people considerable information about their DNA and risk of disease, yet questions have been raised if these tests are ready for widespread public use,” said Eric Topol, director of STSI and the study’s principal investigator. “Our study will prospectively evaluate the effect that state-of-the-art gene scans have on people’s lifestyles, behaviors, diets and psyches.”
Participants will have their DNA scanned on the Affymetrix microarray platform. Their personalized genotype data will be assessed using the Navigenics Health Compass, which currently provides health risk information for nearly two dozen conditions, including cancer, Alzheimer’s disease, and diabetes. Individual data will be stored using Microsoft HealthVault, allowing participants to manage their medical information. That information can be shared with health care providers or others to make better medical or lifestyle decisions.
Participants will report their lifestyle changes at 3- and 12-month intervals after they receive their Navigenics results. They will also take part in periodic health surveys over the next two decades. A complete database of genomic and clinical information will be maintained at the Scripps Genomic Medicine program.
“We stand upon the threshold of a fundamental paradigm shift from reactive to predictive and preventive medicine,” said Vance Vanier, chief medical officer of Navigenics. “Modern genomic tools are instrumental in this shift, and studies that help inform physicians about the most responsible, ethical and effective ways to help people use this information to have impact on their health are crucial. Our partnership with Scripps Health represents our shared commitment to advancing the field of preventive genomic medicine.”
“This project represents the largest single opportunity to date for modern genetics to move outside the laboratory and directly to consumers,” said Affymetrix president Kevin King. “Participants in this study will be able to understand more about their health and susceptibility to disease than ever before.”
“Personalized medicine stands to change the way people approach their health and wellness, as well as open up new genetic research opportunities,” said Peter Neupert, corporate vice president of Microsoft’s Health Solutions Group. “This collaboration is a significant step forward in empowering people to proactively address their specific individual health needs, as well as give clinical researchers access to a broader pool of genetic data to develop new disease treatments.”