Natera Implements First Wave of Panorama® AI Improvements With Immediate Impact on Patient Experience and COGS

Rhea-AI Summary

Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ: NTRA) has introduced the first wave of its Panorama AI innovations, enhancing its non-invasive prenatal testing (NIPT) capabilities. Key improvements include:

• Increased positive predictive value for 22q11.2 deletion syndrome to 53%, the highest in the industry.
• 50% reduction in the no-call rate for aneuploidies with maintained sensitivity.
• Lowered cost of goods sold (COGS) due to workflow optimizations.

The changes aim to strengthen Natera's position in the NIPT market and are expected to contribute to profitability in 2021.

Positive

• Enhanced positive predictive value for 22q11.2 deletion syndrome increased to 53%.
• 50% reduction in no-call rate for aneuploidies while maintaining sensitivity.
• Cost of goods sold decreased due to workflow improvements.

Negative

• None.

AUSTIN, Texas, April 7, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ: NTRA), a pioneer and global leader in cell-free DNA testing, has implemented the first wave of Panorama AI innovations following the breakthrough results shared earlier from the SMART study.

Panorama AI is a new algorithm for the Panorama NIPT that leverages enhanced probabilistic modeling and artificial intelligence-based technology, builds on the unique SNP-based platform, and utilizes information from over 2 million cfDNA tests performed by Natera. These improvements were validated in SMART, the largest prospective NIPT study ever conducted with more than 20,000 enrolled patients. The impact of the innovations that were launched recently include:

• Improved positive predictive value (PPV) for 22q11.2 deletion syndrome from 24% to 53%, the highest in the industry, to complement the highest sensitivity
• 50% reduction of no-call rate while maintaining the highest sensitivity for aneuploidies
• Reduction in cost of goods sold (COGS) from workflow changes that were made possible by Panorama AI

"Offering an aneuploidy test with the highest sensitivity has always been central to the Panorama test. It's easy to provide results to everyone if you don't set high standards of quality. I am pleased that our Data Science team was able to develop proprietary algorithms that allow us to reduce the no-call rate by 50% in the first wave of innovations, while maintaining our stringent quality standards, and lowering COGS," said George Gemelos, SVP of R&D and head of the Data Science team at Natera. "Further, the significant improvement in PPV for 22q11.2 deletion syndrome has been positively received by thought leaders, especially when combined with our industry leading sensitivity, which bodes well for societal endorsement of universal screening during pregnancy."

"Our market leadership has been driven by significant competitive advantages related to innovation documented in 23 publications including more than 1.3 million patients. We are extremely pleased with the receptivity of the SMART data after we announced it at the SMFM conference earlier this year," said Ramesh Hariharan, General Manager of the Women's Health business for Natera. "In addition to having a positive impact on test volumes, the recent wave of innovations position Natera's Women's Health business to become profitable in 2021, further increasing our position of strength in the NIPT market."

About Panorama®

Panorama reveals a baby's risk for severe genetic disorders as early as nine weeks into pregnancy. The test uses a unique single-nucleotide polymorphism (SNP)-based technology to analyze fetal/placental DNA obtained through a blood draw from the mother. It is the only commercially available test that differentiates between maternal and fetal DNA to assess the risk of aneuploidies. The test also screens twin pregnancies for zygosity and fetal sex of each baby, and identifies risk for more genetic conditions in twin pregnancies than any other NIPT. Panorama is one of several genetic screening tests from Natera designed to help families on the path to parenthood. Natera has published 23 papers, studying over 1.3 million patients, since the launch of Panorama – the largest body of evidence in the space today. Panorama has been developed and its performance characteristics determined by Natera, the CLIA-certified laboratory performing the test. The test has not been cleared or approved by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA). CAP accredited, ISO 13485 certified, and CLIA certified.

About Natera

Natera is a pioneer and global leader in cell-free DNA testing from a simple blood draw. The mission of the company is to change the management of disease worldwide with a focus on women's health, oncology, and organ health. Natera operates ISO 13485-certified and CAP-accredited laboratories certified under the Clinical Laboratory Improvement Amendments (CLIA) in Austin, Texas and San Carlos, California. It offers proprietary genetic testing services to inform obstetricians, transplant physicians, oncologists, and cancer researchers, including biopharmaceutical companies, and genetic laboratories through its cloud-based software platform. For more information, visit natera.com. Follow Natera on LinkedIn.

Forward-Looking Statements

All statements other than statements of historical facts contained in this press release are forward-looking statements and are not a representation that Natera's plans, estimates, or expectations will be achieved. These forward-looking statements represent Natera's expectations as of the date of this press release, and Natera disclaims any obligation to update the forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements are subject to known and unknown risks and uncertainties that may cause actual results to differ materially, including with respect to our efforts to develop and commercialize new product offerings, our ability to successfully increase demand for and grow revenues for our product offerings, whether the results of clinical or other studies will support the use of our product offerings, our expectations of the reliability, accuracy and performance of our tests, or of the benefits of our tests and product offerings to patients, providers and payers. Additional risks and uncertainties are discussed in greater detail in "Risk Factors" in Natera's recent filings on Forms 10-K and 10-Q and in other filings Natera makes with the SEC from time to time. These documents are available at www.natera.com/investors and www.sec.gov.

Contacts

Investor Relations: Mike Brophy, CFO, Natera, Inc., 510-826-2350

Media: Paul Greenland, VP of Corporate Marketing, Natera, Inc., pr@natera.com

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SOURCE Natera, Inc.