23andMe Reports

[DeStrider]

I keep seeing references to 23andMe reports about your genome. I had signed up for their service many years back and never received such a report. All the reports were generic - like you are not going to go bald or you have superior athletic muscles (really?) What service tells you about your genome? I would be very interested in checking my genomic sequence for different genes. Thanks!

[vegasallen1]

I bought Ancestry a few years ago. Recently they have sent me a couple of reports with personality traits and a very slight revision to my ethnicity percentage breakdown. I haven’t gotten anything that resembles a genomic sequence.

[Arhu]

Both of you need to request a download and then upload to a site like promethease but keeping in mind the FDA neutered promethease reports and with 23andme and ancestry you don’t get a full genome anyway

[Deborah_Hall]

Would appreciate guidance on the best services, both to collect sample and to provide analysis. I used 23&Me and Promethease and learned about two significant (Magnitude 4) risk phenotypes that I have. That was certainly worth the price of admssion! But would welcome more insight into the overall genetics.

[AnUser]

See this thread also:

Best way to mine 23&me raw data?

Hivemind, I want to ask your advice on the best way to use 23&me raw data to learn about genetic particulars that could affect our regime or supplement decisions. What 23&me gives us in terms of reports is pretty scant. I know there are services out there, mostly paid, that take your raw output and give you a more granular view. For example, certain alleles make one a poor absorber of Vit D but there’s dozens of nuggets like this. What have you used in the past, what have you got out of it in terms of data, what was the cost and were you satisfied? What did you learn about your specific genetic makeup?

I recommend Nebula genomics for analysis.

[Phillipe]

Did the results lead you to any changes in supplementation or lifestyle, diet, etc.?

[RapAdmin]

It sounds like 23 and me is going out of business. This podcast is interesting because, in part, it delves into the whole “sickcare” vs. “healthcare” issues of the American health system.

Extra: Why Is 23andMe Going Under? (Update) - Freakonomics Radio

[DeStrider]

Yes. 23andMe will probably be delisted from the stock market shortly (this month) as it couldn’t keep its share price above $1. It’s also burning cash. There is an effort to take the company private, but it doesn’t look good. Make sure you get your testing information from the site before it goes dark!

[RapAdmin]

OK - a question for people who have done 23 and me, or looked at the options in this market. Should someone (like myself) who has not yet gotten a 23 and me report, get it now quickly before they shut down?

Are there competitors that offer as good a report? for a competitive price?

[Joseph_Lavelle]

I think you can get a full sequencing for a small premium now. Why not do that since it’s a one and done thing.l?

[DeStrider]

I thought the 23andMe information was useful. I then ran it through Nebula Genomics to get more detail. The problem is that when 23andMe goes out of business, future genetic testing services may not support their data.

[AnUser]

@RapAdmin

Are there competitors that offer as good a report? for a competitive price?

The reports are not useful, just getting the raw genomic data to upload to other services. You can use AncestryDNA® | DNA Tests for Ethnicity & Genealogy DNA Test which sequences 700,000 SNP’s which is 100,000 more than 23andme for $120. Or pay a bit more for whole genome sequencing from Nebula Genomics - 30x Whole Genome Sequencing - DNA Testing or Whole Genome Sequencing Test | Dante Labs – Dante Labs Global, which is much better.

[AnUser]

@RapAdmin

This podcast is interesting because, in part, it delves into the whole “sickcare” vs. “healthcare” issues of the American health system.

I wonder if it’s the case because people don’t know how to reform the pension system for older and healthier lives. Sickcare is the case for the American client states (European countries, AU/NZ), as well.

[RapAdmin]

It sounds, from the podcast, that its likely that the founder, Anne Wojcicki - Wikipedia will likely buy the company herself (she’s the major shareholder, and has boatloads of money having been formerly married to Sergey Brin, co-founder of Google) and her sister is also a billionaire as one of the first employees of Google. I think if Anne buys it, it is likely the best outcome. I like Anne’s efforts with this business and she really sounds like she’s trying to help people. She obviously isn’t doing this for the money - she’s got plenty of that. I hope she’s successful.

[DeStrider]

Well, billionaires’ pet projects don’t need to be profitable. If she has money on that order of magnitude, she could keep it going for quite a while as a private company even with the cash burn. However, it may shrink in scope.

[Elros]

I like 23andme, it’s how I found out about my ApoE4/4 status and a bunch of other health traits. I’ve also done ancestry DNA and myheritage DNA, 23andme is the best of those 3 in my opinion. I’m bummed to hear they’re going under because I just sent in my son’s sample last week!

[DeStrider]

Considering who the CEO is and how much disposable income she has, 23andMe will probably just become a private company. The only real losers here are the stockholders.

[DeStrider]

This Doc is extremely upset about the situation at 23andMe.

ZDoggMD on Instagram: "Doc Vader On Paternity Testing"

[Phillipe]

I like 23andme for the health trait info so I gifted the tests to my son and his wife as they expressed an interest in that also. Skeleton came out of the closet as a result-she found who she thought was her father all her life, was not. Oops.

[RapAdmin]

The DNA Test Delusion

Mass-market genetic testing has little to offer most people. That’s a big problem for 23andMe.

We’re still waiting, in other words, for health care’s great DNA revolution. And a growing contingent is starting to question whether genetic data simply isn’t of much use to the average person. “Everyone now is getting their genetic reports back and realizing that it’s not actually making a damn bit of difference when it comes to their health,” says James Tabery, a professor of philosophy and bioethics at the University of Utah and author of Tyranny of the Gene: Personalized Medicine and Its Threat to Public Health.

“I’m more confident than ever,” Wojcicki says. “But I think there’s also that reality that it’s not like gold dripping from trees.” Few have more riding on the next phase of applications from DNA testing than 23andMe. Over the past decade, it’s tried a lot of strategies to make personalized genetics profitable. It partnered with Big Pharma to develop drugs from DNA insights. It acquired a telehealth company. Most recently it rolled out a $999 yearlong testing subscription that includes full sequencing of the genome’s protein coding regions, two rounds of blood tests and analysis from a clinician. Still, it has yet to graduate from stocking stuffer to health care. As kit sales have slowed, investors have soured on the company’s longer-term bets, and its stock is on the verge of being delisted from the Nasdaq. (On May 10, the company said it had received an extension of 180 days to bring its share price back above $1, according to a filing with the US Securities and Exchange Commission.) 23andMe needs to find a way to increase sales, raise capital or slash spending, even as it struggles to close the gap between the practical uses of DNA testing and the hype.

Wojcicki acknowledges things aren’t going exactly according to plan. “We’re in an industry that is definitely figuring out what is that application of genetics in the clinical space,” she says. “It’s a little bit of a sector in crisis.”

Full article (Businessweek): The DNA Test Delusion