by Dr. Joseph Mercola, Mercola:
STORY AT-A-GLANCE
- GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) will pay 23andMe $20 million to extend its five-year contract to mine the company’s consumer DNA data for another year
- The drugmaker is searching for hints about genes that might be at the root of disease. 23andMe will get royalties on any drugs developed
- 23andMe also recently launched a new DNA-sequencing service called Total Health, which sequences your entire exome, the protein-coding part of your genome, which is thought to be responsible for most disease-causing genes. The move is another step in 23andMe’s plan to transform itself into a full-fledged health care company that also treats patients
TRUTH LIVES on at https://sgtreport.tv/
- 23andMe acquired a telehealth and drug-delivery startup called Lemonaid Health in 2021. Lemonaid doctors are being trained by 23andMe on how to interpret DNA results and provide tailored health advice
- 23andMe’s concept of “health care” is all about expanding the use of drugs by getting people on them earlier, before they even have symptoms, based solely on genetic risk factors
Do you know who has access to your genetic data? If you’ve used a DNA testing company like 23andMe, chances are your genetic data is in the hands of insurance companies and drug companies. It may also be in the hands of hackers. Either way, your DNA could be used against you.
GlaxoSmithKline Extends Data Mining Contract With 23andMe
As reported by Bloomberg,1 GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) will pay 23andMe $20 million to extend its five-year contract to mine the company’s consumer DNA data for another year:
“The idea for drugmakers is to comb the data for hints about genetic pathways that might be at the root of disease, which could significantly speed up the long, slow process of drug development.
GSK and 23andMe have already taken one potential medication to clinical trials: a cancer drug that works to block CD96, a protein that helps modulate the body’s immune responses.
It entered that testing phase in four years, compared to an industry average of about seven years. Overall, the partnership between GSK and 23andMe has produced more than 50 new drug targets …
The new agreement changes some components of the collaboration. Any discoveries GSK makes with the 23andMe data will now be solely owned by the British pharmaceutical giant, while the genetic-testing company will be eligible for royalties on some projects. In the past, the two companies pursued new drug targets jointly.”
In case this wasn’t obvious, YOU pay to have your DNA tested, and then 23andMe sells the mining rights of those data, and makes royalties on new drugs. Quite the profit model, having customers pay for their own exploitation. And GSK isn’t the only drug company mining your data. The deal is nonexclusive, so any number of other companies may be mining your genetic data as well.
23andMe Seeks to Transform Into a Health Care Company
23andMe also recently launched a new DNA-sequencing service called Total Health, which sequences your entire exome, the protein-coding part of your genome, which is thought to be responsible for most disease-causing genes. While their basic DNA test for health and ancestry has a price tag of $229,2 this expanded test will set you back $1,188 — per year.3
The move is another step in 23andMe’s plan to transform itself into a full-fledged health care company that also treats patients. With this goal in mind, 23andMe acquired a telehealth and drug-delivery startup called Lemonaid Health in 2021.4 Lemonaid doctors are reportedly being trained by 23andMe on how to interpret DNA results and provide tailored health advice. According to Bloomberg:5
“Total Health is designed to pinpoint genes 23andMe views as ‘actionable’ — those that some combination of lifestyle changes and medication can affect.
The list includes the more than 80 genes the American College of Medical Genetics consider actionable, including those for cancer, cardiovascular disease, metabolic disease and neurological disorders …
Someone who finds out they’re at risk for early heart disease would want to closely monitor their cholesterol levels and consider going on cholesterol-lowering drugs as soon as those levels become unsafe, said [vice president for genomic health at 23andMe, Noura] Abul-Husn, giving an example of how the information can be used …
The Total Health package’s biannual blood tests give customers a look at more than 50 biomarkers, helping them track progress in managing risks identified by sequencing. Clinicians will provide patients with personalized risk assessments and preventive health plans, along with an annual virtual visit and ongoing messaging …”
Genetic Predisposition — A Tactic to Increase Drug Sales
This is an excellent example of why Americans are so mired in chronic illness, and why genetic testing, as it currently stands, will do nothing to ameliorate the situation.
If you have genetic risk factors for early heart disease, the last thing you want to do is go on cholesterol-lowering drugs as they destroy heart tissue and act as mitochondrial toxins,6,7 Statins also raise your risk of diabetes and dementia.
Unfortunately, if you do an online search for “statins damage heart” or something similar, the first page or two of results will be articles “debunking” claims that they can harm your heart. This is Big Tech censorship at work, and it’s only going to get worse from here. You have to dig deeper into the search results to actually find what you’re looking for. Eventually, you may not find it at all.
The point here is that cholesterol has little to do with the development of heart disease, so the entire premise of this kind of “prevention” is flawed from the get-go. Basically, 23andMe’s concept of “health care” is all about expanding the use of drugs by getting people on them earlier, before they even have symptoms, based solely on genetic risk factors.
Your Genetic Data Can Be Used Against You in Many Ways
Adding insult to injury, your genetic data may be sold to insurance companies that may then charge you extra for a “preexisting condition” you don’t actually have but might potentially develop in the future. Life insurance companies may also charge you more, or decline coverage altogether. As reported in a September 7, 2023, article in The Conversation:8
“In Australia, life insurance companies can legally use the results of genetic tests to discriminate. They can decline to provide life insurance coverage, increase the cost of premiums, or place exclusions on an individual’s cover …
This week, a number of federal parliamentarians argued for a ban on genetic discrimination by life insurance companies … The Disability Discrimination Act 1992 prohibits discrimination on a number of different bases, including genetic risk factors.
However, there is a specific carve-out in the Act that allows life insurers to discriminate in ways other entities are prohibited from doing. This means companies providing insurance for death, income protection, and disability can discriminate on the basis of genetic risk of disease.
Other companies that provide risk-rated insurance (where insurers assess an individual’s risk factors and change coverage or premiums based on this risk) can also use genetic test results to discriminate. This includes travel insurance.”
23andMe, the Google of Gene-Based Medicine
As noted in a November 2013 article by Scientific American,9 23andMe poses a unique threat to the public that few ever discuss. While sold as a medical device, its true function is that of a massive information-gathering operation, just like Google turned out to be.
While it took a while, it’s now become crystal clear that Google is using all that personal data gathered from users to control and suppress information that doesn’t benefit its advertisers. Will 23andMe end up being a repeat of Google’s bait and switch? As reported by Scientific American:10
