A recent New York Times article drew attention to the utility of a new genetic test called polygenic risk scores (PRS) as a tool for risk stratification and informing treatment to prevent heart attacks. This article highlights the growing role of genetics in healthcare, supported by studies that demonstrate the significant contribution of genetic testing in identifying the risk of heart disease. For example, individuals with very high polygenic risk (top 95th percentile) have been found to have a 3-fold risk of coronary artery disease relative to the remainder of the population studied1. We no ..read more

In recent years, genomics has become more than simply sequencing DNA after a diagnosis to learn more about a condition. It is now being utilized as an invaluable tool for making informed, proactive care decisions. In March, Caroline Brown, MBA, Chief Strategy & External Affairs Officer at the Medical University of South Carolina (MUSC), and Daniel Judge, MD, Cardiologist and Principal Investigator and Director of the Cardiovascular Genetics Program at MUSC, came together with Elissa Levin, VP of Medical Affairs and Services at Helix to discuss how their population genomics initiative, In O ..read more

Today, on DNA Day, we celebrate the birth and growth of the genetics field. In 1953, James Watson, Francis Crick, and Rosalind Franklin discovered the DNA’s double helix structure; 50 years later, the first human genome was sequenced in 2003. These groundbreaking achievements cracked open the field of genomics, making the rich data held within our genes accessible for scientists, completely changing how we study diseases and develop new medicines. Today, Helix is building on this scientific foundation to bring forth the next big movement: population genomics.      The discovery ..read more

The genetics you inherit is the only data set in healthcare that doesn’t change over time, which is why, if you generate high enough quality sequencing data you should be able to use that data again and again both in the care of the patient and for research purposes. Because of this, we deploy a Sequence Once, Query OftenTM model, in which patients are comprehensively sequenced just once with our Exome+ assay, creating a lifelong digital genomic resource and enabling point-of-care access to a wealth of clinical genetic insights to improve patient care.   The genetics you inherit is the on ..read more

Primary care was first introduced to the healthcare ecosystem in the early 1960s, and even in its early days, the term had many different definitions and could be applied to many categories of healthcare including the care provided by certain types of clinicians such as nurses, physicians, nurse practitioners, a set of activities or services conducted by primary care clinicians, or a level of care or setting such as community hospital or clinic. Despite the variety of ways primary care can be defined or applied, it has long been recognized as a necessary and foundational component of the US he ..read more

COVID and flu cases appear to have officially peaked in the US. Our top takeaways for the week: COVID cases, hospitalizations and wastewater levels are all trending down. While XBB.1.5 is still growing fairly rapidly (in the west now, along with the northeast and south), it is not translating into an overall increase in cases. There has been a more recent rise in positives for those under 18 years old, but we hypothesize that this likely correlates with kids returning back-to-school from winter break. Figure 1. COVID positivity by age shows a recent rise for those under 18 years old A new s ..read more

As we close the book on 2022 the Helix team was busier than ever in pursuit of our mission to empower every person to improve their life through DNA. Some key highlights: New health system partners: We were excited to share the news of three new health system partnerships this year. In March, we announced our partnership with Minneapolis-based HealthPartners. That was followed in June with the announcement of our work with Memorial Hermann Health System in Houston. We rounded out the year by announcing WellSpan Health in Central Pennsylvania as the latest health system to lead the way in impl ..read more

As predicted, COVID and flu cases are officially on the rise in line with the winter season. Here are our top takeaways for the week: COVID cases are up 55% over the last 2 weeks (as are hospitalizations and deaths), with the BQ.1 and BQ.1.1 variants officially dominating. The two variants make up >50% of all positive cases in our data. While cases were starting to decline in Europe, they are also back up again with the same variants dominating, further supporting the likelihood that they are the leading lineages of the season. Figure 1. BQ.1 and BQ.1.1 make up >50% of all positive cas ..read more

As the Chief Physician Executive of WellSpan Health, Dr. Anthony Aquilina sees meaningful benefits of getting genetic insights into the hands of the providers. WellSpan Health and Helix recently announced a new partnership to create a comprehensive population-scale genetic screening program for Pennsylvanians. We sat down to chat with Dr. Aquilina about the value he sees in this program and why WellSpan Health is doubling down on precision care. Q: Dr. Aquilina, thanks for joining us, can you tell me a little bit about Wellspan Health and your role there? Tony Aquilina: I’m a primary care phy ..read more

Our latest COVID and flu insights as you start prepping for the holidays. Top takeaways: For the first time since July, we are seeing slight increases in COVID positivity rates, with highest growth in individuals 18-24 years old. COVID cases look to be rising slightly now, specifically in 18-24 year olds. While it initially looked like the recombinant variant XBB might have a faster expected growth rate, BQ.1 and BQ.1.1 (which have several mutations that result in immune escape) now make up 30% of the positives we’ve seen, and we expect to grow pretty quickly in dominance in coming weeks. Thi ..read more