There is no doubt the age of wearable monitors is upon us. Sales of physical activity monitors have increased dramatically from 15 million in 2014 to 65 million in 2017, according to Statista.com. A 2017 study by Juniper Research estimates that the use of fitness trackers will double by 2021.…

The National Institutes of Health announced a five-year, $3.1 million grant for Geisinger,a s an extension of its MyCode Community Health initiative to research innovative, genomics-based approaches for the early detection of arrhythmogenic right ventricular cardiomyopathy (ARVC). ARVC is a degenerative heart disease that is responsible for roughly 20 percent…

An international team of investigators has published new data that suggests that rising temperatures stemming from global climate change may increase the number of infants born with congenital heart defects (CHD) in the United States over the next two decades. “Our findings underscore the alarming impact of climate change on…

Cambridge Epigenetix has launched a discovery and development program for a test to detect colorectal and other cancers, using proceeds from a just-completed $30 million financing round and exclusive patent rights the company has acquired for its epigenetic sequencing platform. The company is developing a detection test for colorectal cancer…

The NIH’s All of Us Research Program has awarded a total $28.6 million to establish three genome centers nationwide. All of Us is the research cohort piece of the Precision Medicine Initiative (PMI) designed to glean health and wellness data from 1 million or more Americans. The funding is intended…

Seqster said today its health data management platform will be integrated with Scripps Research Translational Institute (SRTI)’s MyGeneRank app in a collaboration designed to promote better healthcare decisions by app users through tracking of medications and lifestyle modifications. The collaboration, whose value was not disclosed, was announced at the 2018…

San Diego-based testing company Diagnomics announced it has entered a partnership with pharmacogenomics (PGx) knowledgebase company Translational Software Inc. (TSI). Under the partnership, Diagnomics will deploy TSI’s PGx technology to generate a report on a tested individual’s potential to respond to specific drugs, which drugs should be avoided, and how…

GenomeDx Biosciences said today it will use its Decipher Prostate Cancer Classifier tests, and the database from which they are derived, to test samples from multiple clinical trials by Johnson & Johnson’s Janssen Pharmaceuticals in order to assess prostate cancer candidates. The companies plan to examine the association of prognostic…

Few scientists earn a repeat invitation to keynote the Molecular Medicine Tri-Con (TRICON) event, especially not 23 years apart. But Lee Hood is an exception. Kicking off the 25th anniversary edition of TRICON in San Francisco earlier this week, Hood reflected on his mission to promote “P4 medicine”, illustrating with…

Genome Medical, which bills itself as a national genomics medical practice, has announced it will use the genomic data analysis and reporting services of Fabric Genomics to provide its patients, doctors, and genetic counselors with insight into both targeted treatments and disease prevention. “Genome Medical is the first and only…

Fitbit has been chosen as the first wearable for use in the NIH’s All of Us Research Program, the research cohort piece of the Precision Medicine Initiative (PMI) designed to glean health and wellness data from 1 million or more Americans. As part of All of Us, the Scripps Translational…

The U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) said it will allow Abbott’s $5.3 billion acquisition of Alere to proceed—in return for Alere divesting itself of two product lines and three facilities associated with them. Under a proposed consent order with the FTC, which had challenged the acquisition, Alere will sell its…

Genome Medical, which bills itself as a national genomics medical practice, has announced it will use the genomic data analysis and reporting services of Fabric Genomics to provide its patients, doctors, and genetic counselors with insight into both targeted treatments and disease prevention. Under the deal, Genome Medical, in conjunction…

Invitae said today it has acquired Ommdom, the developer of the CancerGene Connect risk assessment and family history analysis platform, in a deal designed to expand the buyer’s genome management support offerings for clinicians. Invitae acquired all of Ommdom's outstanding capital stock in exchange for approximately $6 million in Invitae…

Molecular diagnostics accounts for only a tenth of the in vitro diagnostics (IVD) market—but most of its hopes for future revenue growth, according to Kalorama Information, which projects the MDx market will balloon to $10 billion by 2021. At 8% growth, molecular diagnostics is expected to double the 4% rate…