From recruitment to real-world impact
Renown Institute for Health Innovation is partnering with Helix to carry out a large-scale genetic screening and research initiative.
Renown Health strives to ensure no patient is overlooked.
As part of the Healthy Nevada Project (HNP) expansion, Renown Health Institute for Health Innovation (Renown IHI) sought to engage 40,000 Nevadans in a large-scale genomics research initiative to drive novel discoveries and improve clinical care. This meant that besides needing participant-friendly engagement tools, they needed next-generation sequencing technology to produce clinical-grade data at scale. Historically, this would have required coordinating with multiple partners.
A collaboration with Helix, offering Renown healthcare expertise and an end-to-end population health solution.
Renown Health worked closely with Helix to leverage its end-to-end population health solution. Helix's participant-facing engagement tools, in-house clinical and scientific expertise, clinical-grade Exome+® assay, and next-generation sequencing lab (one of the world's largest) provided this project with powerful tools that helped it become one of the fastest-growing population sequencing initiatives in the United States.
The Healthy Nevada Project
The Healthy Nevada Project, created by the Renown Institute for Health Innovation (IHI), is a research study offering no-cost genetic screening to residents of Nevada. This study aims to create a robust set of data—genomics, medical, and environmental—that enables researchers at Renown Health and the University of Nevada, Reno, to advance the standard of care in Nevada and the nation. Participants in this study are given insights about their genetic ancestry and the potential influence of their DNA on certain wellness traits; among those who opt-in to receiving potentially medically relevant information, some participants will also learn about their genetic predispositions for certain diseases linked to heart disease and various cancers.
More than an exome
Each participant's DNA was sequenced using the Exome+® assay — far surpassing the amount of data collected in other comparable initiatives — enabling Renown IHI to deliver actionable insights to their patients and create a comprehensive research database that would allow them to become a leading innovator in precision health.
The Exome+® assay covers the entire exome plus more than 300,000 informative non-coding regions available to help participants (and their physicians) continue learning from their DNA over time.
- 20K
- genes sequenced per participant
- 1 sequence
- equals a lifetime of insights
Renown IHI raised the standard of care in their community in under a year with one of the most extensive sets of genomic and health data.
Unprecedented pace
- 10,000
- participant sign-ups within 4 days
- 20,000+
- participants recruited, sequenced, and given results within 6 months
- >50,000
- participants and growing within 5 years
Measurable clinical impact
- 1 in 75
- were at-risk for at least one serious, actionable genetic condition across CDC Tier 1 conditions
- 90%
- of patients testing positive had not been previously identified under current medical practice
- 22%
- had already developed indications of disease
The partnership continues
Renown Health has increased its program goal from 40,000 to 250,000 participants in Nevada — releasing peer-reviewed research on broad population screening and novel discoveries using the Exome+® assay. 97% of participants opted in for future research.
Preventive Genetic Screening
Grzymski JJ, et al. Population genetic screening efficiently identifies carriers of autosomal dominant diseases. Nature Medicine. July 27, 2020.
Read the paperNovel Discoveries
Cirulli ET, et al. Genome-wide rare variant analysis for thousands of phenotypes in over 70,000 exomes from two cohorts. Nature Communications. Jan. 28, 2020.
Read the paper"We quickly realized both the benefits of clinical genomics in the healthcare space and how many cases of CDC tier-one conditions were being missed. Not because providers don't have a good grasp of risk, but because genetics is just a sharper tool for that problem... Having a partner like Helix that really works with you as you develop these programs — and that really helps you understand how you can use risk assessment to improve population health — is absolutely vital."
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