Uniquely You, a no-cost community health initiative and research program, will bring genetic screening to Louisiana communities, helping identify certain serious health risks earlier and support more personalized, preventive care
NEW ORLEANS and SAN MATEO, Calif., Oct. 22, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- A new era of more personalized, preventive healthcare is taking shape in Louisiana and across the Gulf South. LCMC Health and Helix today announced Uniquely You, a landmark five-year initiative that will offer no-cost genetic screening to 100,000 interested Louisiana adults, giving people greater insight into certain inherited health risks and helping physicians identify opportunities for earlier intervention and prevention. Enrollment will begin in early 2027.
Through the initiative, eligible participants can learn whether they have inherited genetic risk factors associated with certain hereditary cancers or an inherited condition that can lead to early heart disease. These risks can sometimes go undetected through traditional care or family history alone. By identifying these risks earlier, Uniquely You can give participants and their healthcare providers additional information to guide prevention and care.
"This initiative represents the kind of innovation that can change the trajectory of health in Louisiana for generations to come," said Jeff Landry, Governor of Louisiana. "Every Louisianan deserves the opportunity to know more about their health risks and what actions they can take. I'm proud to see LCMC Health bringing cutting-edge precision medicine directly to Louisiana families and giving doctors another powerful tool to protect and improve lives."
For LCMC Health, Uniquely You represents an investment in a different model for the future of healthcare — one that combines what physicians know about a patient today with information that may help identify future health risks.
"For too long, healthcare has largely been built around treating disease once it appears. We have an opportunity to help change that," said Greg Feirn, CEO of LCMC Health. "Through Uniquely You, we're investing in the ability to understand risk earlier, giving patients and physicians more information to act on and build a healthcare system that becomes increasingly preventive and personalized. Most importantly, we're making that innovation accessible right here in Louisiana."
Why This Matters for Louisiana
Genetic risk does not always reveal itself through symptoms or even family history. Uniquely You will screen for inherited risk associated with hereditary breast and ovarian cancers (BRCA1 and BRCA2 genes), Lynch syndrome and familial hypercholesterolemia, a genetic condition that causes very high cholesterol and can lead to early heart disease.
Across Helix Research Network® programs, approximately one in 75 participants have received a positive result for one of these serious genetic conditions for which preventive steps or treatment may be available. Participants with a positive result through Uniquely You will be offered genetic counseling at no cost to help them understand their results and potential next steps.
Beyond helping individual participants, the initiative can expand access to genetic screening and help LCMC Health better understand the health needs of the communities it serves. Over time, that knowledge may help inform new approaches to prevention, research and care while strengthening New Orleans' role as a center for healthcare innovation.
"New Orleans has an opportunity to help shape what the future of healthcare looks like," said Helena Moreno, Mayor of New Orleans. "By bringing this kind of innovation directly to our community, we can give more people information to take charge of their health while building knowledge that can help us address some of the health challenges our families have faced for generations."
How Uniquely You Works
Beginning in early 2027, eligible Louisiana adults will be able to participate through a simple process:
From One Person's DNA to a Healthier Louisiana
The potential of Uniquely You extends beyond individual screening. By engaging 100,000 participants, LCMC Health and Helix aim to learn more about the health needs of Louisiana communities and support future research and more personalized care.
With Sequence Once, Query Often®, Helix's technology allows information from a single DNA sample to potentially support additional genetic testing in the future, which may eliminate the need to collect another sample.
"We are thrilled to welcome LCMC Health into the Helix Research Network," said James Lu, M.D., Ph.D., CEO and co-founder of Helix. "LCMC Health's deep-rooted dedication to its community makes them the perfect partner for an initiative of this scale. Together, we are building a robust genomic infrastructure in Louisiana designed to help improve individual patient outcomes and drive healthier communities for generations to come."
Designed for Access and Community Impact
The program is designed to make participation as accessible as possible. Participation is voluntary, results are confidential and genetic screening is provided at no cost. Over time, information gained through the program is intended to help researchers and clinicians better understand the health needs of the communities they serve in order to develop more personalized approaches to prevention and care.
Building the Future of Healthcare Here at Home
Uniquely You is part of LCMC Health's broader vision to bring precision medicine into everyday patient care, connecting genomic insights with clinical care, research and prevention.
The long-term opportunity is bigger than genetic screening. It is about giving Louisiana physicians more information to understand health risks earlier, creating new opportunities for prevention and research and building advanced healthcare capabilities here at home.
"This is ultimately about what we can do differently for the next generation," Feirn said. "If we can identify risk earlier, learn more about the communities we serve and translate that knowledge into better prevention and care, we have the opportunity to change health outcomes — not just for one patient, but for families across Louisiana and the Gulf South."
Beginning in early 2027, eligible adults across Louisiana and the Gulf South will have access to Uniquely You. Participants will be able to provide a DNA sample at participating hospitals, clinics and community locations or through an at-home cheek swab kit, helping make the program accessible across the state. To learn more about Uniquely You and receive updates about enrollment, visit LCMChealth.org/UniquelyYou.
To learn more about the Helix Research Network, visit helix.com.
About LCMC Health
Established in 2009, LCMC Health is a Louisiana-based, not-for-profit hospital system serving the healthcare needs of the Gulf Coast region. LCMC Health currently manages Manning Family Children's, East Jefferson General Hospital, Lakeside Hospital, Lakeview Hospital, New Orleans East Hospital, Touro, University Medical Center New Orleans and West Jefferson Medical Center.
About Helix
Helix is the leading enterprise genomics platform. The company transforms health systems and enables life science organizations to leverage the power of genomics across their enterprise, creating strategic value and fueling future growth. The Helix Research Network® — the largest precision health network in the world — accelerates genomic discoveries and translates them into real-world clinical impact.
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SOURCE Helix
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