An upstart California laboratory is trying to further alter the already shaken-up genomic testing market by introducing a $249 BRCA test. The test, offered by Burlingame-based Color Genomics, analyzes 19 genes that are currently linked to an inherited predisposition to breast and ovarian cancer. Those include the BRCA1 and BRCA2 genes. “We founded Color because we want to give every person the opportunity to understand their genetic risk of cancer. This important information gives people the opportunity to work with their physician to manage their risk and make key life choices,” said Elad Gil, the company’s CEO, in a statement. BRCA testing for a low three-figure price is a far cry from the $4,000 or so that had been charged for a BRCA assay by Myriad Genetics prior to a 2013 U.S. Supreme Court decision that eliminated its patent on the gene. Competing labs almost immediately began offering their own versions of the test, but usually their price tag remained in the four figures. “It is no surprise that following the Supreme Court decision on gene patents, commercial laboratories have jumped into the (BRCA) testing world,” said Peter Francis, chief executive officer of Clinical Laboratory Sales Training, a Maryland-based consulting […]
An upstart California laboratory is trying to further alter the already shaken-up genomic testing market by introducing a $249 BRCA test.
The test, offered by Burlingame-based Color Genomics, analyzes 19 genes that are currently linked to an inherited predisposition to breast and ovarian cancer. Those include the BRCA1 and BRCA2 genes.
“We founded Color because we want to give every person the opportunity to understand their genetic risk of cancer. This important information gives people the opportunity to work with their physician to manage their risk and make key life choices,” said Elad Gil, the company’s CEO, in a statement.
BRCA testing for a low three-figure price is a far cry from the $4,000 or so that had been charged for a BRCA assay by Myriad Genetics prior to a 2013 U.S. Supreme Court decision that eliminated its patent on the gene. Competing labs almost immediately began offering their own versions of the test, but usually their price tag remained in the four figures.
“It is no surprise that following the Supreme Court decision on gene patents, commercial laboratories have jumped into the (BRCA) testing world,” said Peter Francis, chief executive officer of Clinical Laboratory Sales Training, a Maryland-based consulting firm. “It’s a natural business progression for labs to attempt to lower costs/pricing in order to attract new customers.”
But whether or not Color Genomics’ pricing will create a specific demand remains to be seen.
Francis noted that Color Genomics did not post any data on its corporate website regarding the clinical trials data it may have gleaned from its own BRCA test.
“Physicians typically want to see how the test performs before they subscribe to its clinical accuracy—and, therefore, start ordering the test,” he said. “Clinicians need to weigh a lab’s price against the test’s clinically proven scientific data using a specific methodology. In the current world, $250 sounds very inexpensive. The price alone may make clinicians wary.”
Takeaway: Color Genomics’ pricing could shake up the BRCA testing market even further.
