Good Start Genetics and Genome Medical Announce Partnership to Provide Genetic Counseling to Couples Undergoing Carrier Testing
Partnership Establishes Strong Foundation as Good Start Builds Additional Momentum Toward Democratization of Genetic Testing
Jan 11, 2017, 07:30 ET
CAMBRIDGE, Mass., Jan. 11, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Good Start Genetics, developers of best-in-class genetic sequencing solutions for growing families, continues its commitment to democratize genetic testing by including high quality genetic counseling with all its tests. Genome Medical will support Good Start's physician-mediated carrier screening offering, VeriYou, which is aimed at the 62 million women that medical societies suggest should be screened, to ensure that couples exploring their carrier status for cystic fibrosis and spinal muscular atrophy, the two most common inherited disorders in children, have easy access to certified genetic counselors and insightful educational content.
"At Good Start, our mission is to deliver the most advanced and affordable genetic testing within a care environment that includes high quality counseling and support for individuals and their treating physicians," said Jeffrey R. Luber, President and CEO. "As our company continues to grow in numerous high value channels, our partnership with Genome Medical, in concert with our internal team of expert genetic counselors, further augments our strong foundation in providing appropriate meaning and actionable context for every sequencing test we run in preconception testing."
"With the pace of innovation in genetics accelerating, it is essential to ensure that all test results—positive and negative—come with high-quality, affordable genetic counseling to ensure that patients and their physicians fully understand their meaning," said Nicole Faulkner, Good Start's Medical Director. "I am thrilled to be able to amplify our world-class team via our partnership with Genome Medical. We will continue to provide best-in-class support, and related digital content, for all our tests in all our channels, to provide families with clear, personalized genetic action plans for discussion with their treating physician."
"We are delighted to partner with Good Start Genetics to help bring their high quality genetic tests together with our counseling for couples seeking to start a family," said Genome Medical CEO Lisa Alderson. "Our company was created to lower the barriers to testing and increase the access to genetic care to allow everyone to benefit from the health-relevant insights in their genome. This vision aligns nicely with Good Start's strategy in preconception testing."
"As genomics becomes increasingly integrated within health care, it will be important to have readily available expertise that will scale to the anticipated needs of patients and physicians," said Robert C. Green, MD, MPH, a medical geneticist at Brigham and Women's Hospital and Harvard Medical School who is a co-founder of Genome Medical and chairs the company's Scientific Advisory Board. "The relationship between Good Start and Genome Medical will bring valuable genetic expertise to those starting a family."
About VeriYou
VeriYou was launched by Good Start Genetics in September 2016. Once a prospective parent registers/activates a VeriYou test and submits the necessary family history and consent information, a licensed physician will review and order the test, if appropriate. Easy-to-understand results are delivered securely and interactively online along with educational information. This includes the ability to address follow-up questions with physicians directly and to connect with genetic counselors. VeriYou tests for 20 times more CF variants than the leading consumer genetics company (591 CF variants compared to 28*). If both partners carry a variant for the same disorder, there is a 25 percent chance the child will be born with the disorder.
* This does not mean that VeriYou identifies 20 times more carriers.
VeriYou is available on Amazon. To find out more information on VeriYou please visit: http://amzn.to/2dP6LEE
About Good Start Genetics:
Good Start Genetics is an information solutions company delivering best-in-class genetics offerings to growing families. Using advanced clinical sequencing, proprietary methods and information tailored to the individual, the company's suite of offerings arms clinicians and patients with insightful and actionable information to promote successful pregnancies and help build healthy families. The newly launched VeriYou broadens the Company's product portfolio to deliver carrier screening to families of all economic backgrounds. Its flagship genetic carrier screening service, GeneVu, is a comprehensive menu of highly-accurate tests for known and novel mutations that cause inherited genetic disorders, and its proprietary and advanced preimplantation genetic screening test, EmbryVu, based on technologies exclusively licensed from Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, is helping a wider range of couples find their paths to pregnancy at significantly lower costs. Good Start Genetics complements these offerings with world class customer care and access to genetic counseling to help families stay well- informed and best prepare for tomorrow. For more information, please visit http://www.goodstartgenetics.com or join us on Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn.
About Genome Medical
Genome Medical is a network of genomics services experts using telemedicine to integrate genomic insights into everyday health care. Genome Medical genetic counselors and medical genetics physicians offer high quality consultations for both patients and physicians seeking trusted advisors to navigate the rapidly evolving field of genomics. As genetic information becomes increasingly important in medicine, there are too few experts to meet the growing demand for interpretation. Genome Medical's mission is to bridge the gap between genomic technology and medical practice by creating a scalable, efficient model for lifelong genome-centered health care. To learn more, please visit http://www.genomemedical.com or find us on Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn or GooglePlus.
SOURCE Good Start Genetics