Advances in diagnostics have led to cancer screening. When therapeutic interventions have a greater chance of success, the disease can be found in the earliest signs. But it will take more time to make these tests the standard of care. Phil Febbo, chief medical officer of Illumina, stated that widespread adoption will require more understanding of these tests and more evidence that they are effective. The gene sequencing giant is doing everything it can to raise awareness. An employee benefit provided by the company for employees 55 years and older is early detection testing.
“I plan to get it every year,” Febbo said.
Febbo spoke in a panel discussion at the CB Insights Future of Health conference on Thursday. Alicia Zhou, chief scientific officer of the genetic testing company Color, also joined him. Illumina is probably best known for providing reagents and equipment for genetic testing (including cancer diagnosis).But the company’s current products include Grail, a diagnostic company spun off from Illumina, was asked to establish it earlier this year. Grail has developed a test that can detect genetic indicators of cancer from a liquid biopsy (a small sample of blood).
Febbo said that liquid biopsies from Grail and other companies are designed to detect cancer early, making early treatment possible. To help support the adoption of these tests, he said the company needs to generate evidence that these tests do not flag false positives. Febbo said that in clinical trials, the false positives of the Grail test are comparable to established screening tests (such as mammograms). Febbo said that as the evidence for these tests grows, the reasons for adopting these tests will become stronger.
Zhou said that if we want to use genetic testing more, we need to change our views on these tests. The high cost of genetic testing means that the number of people eligible for such testing is limited. But these costs have been declining, which means that genomic testing can be used as data and other factors to assess the health of patients. Zhou said that the scalability of genetic testing is about reducing the price of these tests and making them more accessible.
Covid-19 introduced Color to more accessibility issues. As the pandemic unfolded, the company expanded its scope to include Covid testing and vaccine distribution. Zhou said this prompted the company to consider access barriers. Zhou said that it is not only to provide vaccines, but also to bring these vaccines to where people are, such as community centers and religious organizations. These sites need flexible working hours to accommodate those who cannot leave work during the day. Zhou added that communities and faith organizations can also help overcome vaccine hesitation.
“When you get approval for a vaccine, work will not stop,” she said. “You need to think about distribution.”
Zhou and Febbo said that many of the changes caused by healthcare during the pandemic are changes for the better. Much of the communication between patients and their doctors has moved to Zoom, and Febbo said patients and providers have realized that they don’t need to do everything in person. Zhou said the lockdown has led diagnostic companies to find new ways to reach patients. She said, for example, if it were not for the pandemic, the industry would not try to pass the test. Clinicians and diagnostic companies have found other solutions. Zhou pointed out that some of the tests that were previously performed by visiting the clinical site in person can now be completed by sending the test kit to the patient’s home.
“These are the things we will stick to after Covid,” Zhou said.
Photo: Lex, Getty Images
