23andMe Holding Co. (Nasdaq: ME) (23andMe) today announced that a
new survey, which found that primary care physicians are more and
more comfortable discussing genetic testing with their patients
than they were two years ago, and that more than two-thirds of
those physicians who’ve taken a test themselves would recommend
testing for health purposes if a patient inquired.
The survey, conducted by Medscape — a leading source of clinical
news, health information, and point-of-care tools for healthcare
professionals — is the third in a series of surveys done in
collaboration with 23andMe since 2018, which look at physicians’
attitudes and knowledge of direct-to-consumer (DTC) genetic
testing.
The responses are a marked difference in attitudes among primary
care physicians in the last four years, and a sea change in
attitudes from when DTC genetic testing from companies like 23andMe
first became available in 2007. As recently as 2016, a study by the
Impact of Personal Genomics Study Group found that many consumers
said their physicians were skeptical of DTC genetic testing, or
uninterested in their results. Based on this most recent survey,
physicians’ attitudes seem to have evolved.
“Genetic information can contribute to keeping people healthy
and preventing disease. It can also help us diagnose diseases
earlier and personalize management,” said Noura Abul-Husn, MD, PhD,
Vice President of Genomic Health at 23andMe. “That’s what makes
building ways to incorporate this information into clinical care so
important. It’s encouraging to see more and more physicians
recognize the potential for genetics to improve patient care.”
The rise in DTC genetic testing means that more and more doctors
and their patients are aware of the role their genetics plays in
health. Genetics has always played a role in health outcomes, just
as other factors like environment and lifestyle, but in 2018 only
about three in ten doctors said they regularly saw cases involving
genetics at least once a week or more.
“Awareness of the value of genetics in patient care provides the
impetus for improved genetics education and learning for healthcare
providers — a long-known barrier to genetics-informed healthcare,"
said Anne Greb, 23andMe’s Director of Clinical Genetics, Education
& Outreach.
There’s also increased familiarity with DTC genetic testing.
According to the survey, most of the doctors surveyed said they
were familiar with genetic testing, and 34 percent said they had
personally taken a direct-to-consumer genetic health test.
The increase in use of DTC genetic testing means that primary
care physicians have a better understanding of the types of
information — genetic health predispositions, carrier status and
pharmacogenomic reports — that are available to their patients.
Indeed, the survey shows that primary care physicians are more
aware of the types of information offered in DTC genetic testing
when compared to 2020. For example, in 2020 only about 36 percent
were aware that consumer tests offered information indicating how a
person’s genetics can affect their response to certain medications,
versus 50 percent awareness in 2022. Similarly, awareness regarding
genetic health predisposition information in genetic tests went up
from 58 percent in 2020 to 66 percent in 2022.
The doctors surveyed were also more likely than they were two
years ago to have discussed issues around genetic testing,
including family health history, and privacy protections. About 33
percent of doctors said they’d had patients wanting to discuss
their genetic health risk information from a DTC genetic health
test.
Increased awareness of genetics has also resulted in doctors
recognizing the value of family health history. Sixty-five percent
of doctors said family health history would be helpful in providing
the best care to patients About 40 percent of physicians surveyed
report discussing three-generation family history with patients
over the past 12 months. This was up from 29 percent in 2020.
Documenting a three-generation family history ranked second as the
area doctors said they were most comfortable with when discussing
genetic testing with patients.
With this greater familiarity with the types of tests available,
two-thirds of primary care physicians said that they would now
“definitely” or “probably” recommend genetic testing for health
purposes to inquiring patients. Because these tests often engage
people in their own health, doctors also see an opportunity for
better outcomes. Sixty-two percent of doctors surveyed said genetic
testing could help them provide more personalized care. And 66
percent said using genetic testing could lead to better outcomes
because their patients are more proactive after learning about
their DNA health profile.
Some of these results, along with a survey from consumers, were
included in data 23andMe released in March 2023 looking at how
genetics can help bridge the gap to more personalized
healthcare.
Methodology
The Medscape survey was completed by 1,000 U.S. primary care
physicians on the Medscape platform between October 5th to 26th
2022. One hundred percent of respondents were primary care
physicians in family, internal medicine or internal medicine with a
sub-specialty. Respondents have practiced an average of 20.9 years.
Respondents were invited to respond to the online survey. The
margin of error at a 95% confidence level is +/- 3.0%. The survey
is a follow-up to a 2018 survey and a 2020 survey on the same topic
and on the same platform.
About MedscapeMedscape is the leading source of
clinical news, health information, and point-of-care tools for
health care professionals. Medscape offers specialists, primary
care physicians, and other health professionals the most robust and
integrated medical information and educational tools. Medscape
Education (medscape.org) is the leading destination for continuous
professional development, consisting of more than 30
specialty-focused destinations offering thousands of free C.M.E.
and C.E. courses and other educational programs for physicians,
nurses, and other health care professionals. Medscape is a
subsidiary of WebMD Health Corp.
About 23andMe23andMe
is a genetics-led consumer healthcare and biopharmaceutical company
empowering a healthier future. For more information, please visit
www.23andMe.com.
Forward Looking
StatementsThis press release contains forward-looking
statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act
of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act
of 1934, as amended, including, without limitation, statements
regarding the future performance of 23andMe’s businesses in
consumer genetics and therapeutics and the growth and potential of
its proprietary research platform. All statements, other than
statements of historical fact, included or incorporated in this
press release, including statements regarding 23andMe’s strategy,
financial position, funding for continued operations, cash
reserves, projected costs, plans, and objectives of management, are
forward-looking statements. The words "believes," "anticipates,"
"estimates," "plans," "expects," "intends," "may," "could,"
"should," "potential," "likely," "projects," “predicts,”
"continue," "will," “schedule,” and "would" or, in each case, their
negative or other variations or comparable terminology, are
intended to identify forward-looking statements, although not all
forward-looking statements contain these identifying words. These
forward-looking statements are predictions based on 23andMe’s
current expectations and projections about future events and
various assumptions. 23andMe cannot guarantee that it will actually
achieve the plans, intentions, or expectations disclosed in its
forward-looking statements and you should not place undue reliance
on 23andMe’s forward-looking statements. These forward-looking
statements involve a number of risks, uncertainties (many of which
are beyond the control of 23andMe), or other assumptions that may
cause actual results or performance to differ materially from those
expressed or implied by these forward-looking statements. The
forward-looking statements contained herein are also subject
generally to other risks and uncertainties that are described from
time to time in the Company’s filings with the Securities and
Exchange Commission, including under Item 1A, “Risk Factors” in the
Company’s most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K, as filed with the
Securities and Exchange Commission, and as revised and updated by
our Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q and Current Reports on Form 8-K.
The statements made herein are made as of the date of this press
release and, except as may be required by law, 23andMe undertakes
no obligation to update them, whether as a result of new
information, developments, or otherwise.
ContactsInvestor Relations Contact:
investors@23andMe.comMedia Contact: press@23andMe.com
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