Personalis Announces Delivery of the 100,000th Genome to the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs Million Veteran Program
MENLO PARK, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Personalis, Inc. (Nasdaq: PSNL), a leader in advanced genomics for population sequencing and cancer, announced today that it has delivered the 100,000th whole human genome sequence dataset to the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs Million Veteran Program (VA MVP). Although Personalis has been contracted by the VA MVP since 2012, the program has accelerated and over 50,000 of these genomes have been delivered in 2020.
“The VA MVP is the largest whole genome sequencing project in the United States and this is a significant milestone for both the program and for Personalis,” said John West, Chief Executive Officer. “Population-scale sequencing projects of this nature represent a cornerstone in our effort to accelerate the advancement of precision medicine across a wide range of disease areas. With our sizable investments in the technology and infrastructure, necessary to win and execute these projects, Personalis sees population genomics and health as key priorities for our company. We congratulate the VA MVP for their visionary leadership and note that VA scientists now list over 50 peer reviewed publications from the Program.”
Earlier this year, the company strengthened its commitment to this application area with the appointment of Mr. Kevin Dunne as its Head of Population Genomics. Personalis believes the population genomics research efforts of today will enable precision medicine in healthcare systems, spanning both germline disease risk and cancer management.
About the VA Million Veteran Program
Launched in 2011, the VA MVP is a landmark research effort aimed at better understanding how genetic variations affect health. Up to two-million veterans are expected to enroll in the VA MVP. Data and genetic samples collected through the program are stored securely and made available for studies by authorized researchers, with stringent safeguards in place to protect Veterans’ private health information. The VA MVP was enrolling veterans at 63 VA medical centers nationwide prior to the pandemic. The VA’s central biorepository is equipped with a state-of-the-art robotic system for DNA extraction and storage and is currently being expanded to support up to 4 million samples. With approximately 850,000 enrollees since 2011, the VA MVP already far exceeds the enrollment numbers of any single VA study or research program in the past, and is in fact one of the largest research cohorts of its kind in the world. The VA MVP provides researchers with a rich resource of genetic, health, lifestyle, and military-exposure data collected from questionnaires, medical records, and genetic analyses. By combining this information into a single database, the VA MVP promises to advance knowledge about the complex links between genes and health. Veterans’ privacy and confidentiality are top priorities in the VA MVP, as in all VA research. For more information about the VA MVP, visit www.research.va.gov/MVP. This press release does not imply a Department of Veterans Affairs endorsement, and is neither paid for nor sponsored, in whole or in part, by any element of the United States government.
About Personalis, Inc.
Personalis, Inc. is a leader in population sequencing and cancer genomics, with a focus on data, scale, efficiency and quality. Personalis operates one of the largest sequencing operations globally and is currently the sole sequencing provider to the VA MVP. In oncology, Personalis is transforming the development of next-generation therapies by providing more comprehensive molecular data about each patient’s cancer and immune response. The Personalis® ImmunoID NeXT Platform® is designed to adapt to the complex and evolving understanding of cancer, providing its biopharmaceutical customers with information on all of the approximately 20,000 human genes, together with the immune system, from a single tissue sample. The Personalis Clinical Laboratory is GxP-aligned as well as CLIA’88-certified and CAP-accredited. For more information, please visit www.personalis.com and follow Personalis on Twitter (@PersonalisInc).
Forward-Looking Statements
All statements in this press release that are not historical are “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of U.S. securities laws, including statements relating to attributes or advantages of the ImmunoID NeXT Platform, Personalis’ services for the VA MVP (including continued receipt of VA MVP samples and continued laboratory operations at the company), the company’s business opportunities, leadership or growth, or other future events. Such forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties, including those related to the COVID-19 pandemic, that could cause actual results to differ materially from any anticipated results or expectations expressed or implied by such statements. Factors that could materially affect actual results can be found in Personalis’ filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, including the company’s most recent reports on Forms 8-K, 10-K and 10-Q, and include those listed under the caption “Risk Factors.” Personalis disclaims any obligation to update such forward-looking statements.
