Up at 5AM: The 5AM Solutions Blog

The World Health Organization’s (WHO) wrapped up its annual World Immunization Week. The WHO kicked off the once-yearly effort to re-ignite the world’s public health agencies’ commitment to ensuring that their constituents’ are immunized against vaccine-preventable illnesses on Monday. 

On Sunday, I had a chance to thumb through Time’s “100 Most Influential People in the World” issue. The list is broken into 5 categories: Titans, Pioneers, Artists, Leaders, and Icons. 

It’s finally here: the Map of Biomedicine ebook!

Last year, 5AM’s Chief Science Officer Will FitzHugh started to make notes about the vast -- and expanding -- field for which we develop software: biomedicine. Originally, his purpose was keeping all of the players straight so that he and 5AM’s software development teams could have a big-picture view of the context that our clients work in, as well as details like the regulatory processes and technological shifts that impact human health.

The New York Times reported today that Color Genomics, a Silicon Valley startup has raised $115 million to make a $249 genetic test a reality. The test identifies faulty BRCA, as well as more than a dozen other cancer-related genes. BRCA1 and BRCA2 mutations are responsible for increasing women’s risks for developing certain breast and ovarian cancers. Filmmaker and actress Angelina Jolie has made headlines over the past few years for her decisions to undergo a preventive mastectomy, and more recently, a preventive oophorectomy in response to her own gene-related disease risks.

If you’ve been watching the AMC series “Better Call Saul” then you know that Chuck McGill — the older brother of protagonist Jimmy McGill — suffers from a mysterious, and little-understood collection of symptoms described as electromagnetic hypersensitivity (EHS). EHS sufferers report symptoms ranging from headaches to rashes to burning sensations when they are exposed to electromagnetic fields, such as those associated with cell phones. 

Electronic health records have come under scrutiny lately, and that has continued this week at HIMSS15, the annual conference of the Health Information and Management Systems Society (HIMSS). Here's some of what's been addressed at the conference so far:

Personalized medicine is getting a lot of attention these days. In January, President Obama announced that his 2016 budget includes a $215 million investment in precision medicine.

In my Map of Biomedicine blog posts, so far, I’ve focused on how diagnostics get to market. But you may recall that way back in my first post I discussed the major themes of the map - what I called ‘vignettes’. The first vignette was the development of diagnostic tests, which is what I’ve focused on so far. Those blog posts are being collected and expanded in an e-book which will be released soon, so keep an eye out for that.

You might remember that back in 2007 and 2008, no publication felt quite right unless it included at least one trend piece about the trendiest scientific and social development of the time: the spit party. Back then, companies like 23andMe were brand new and for less than $500, you could delve into your ancestral genetics, plus get a peek at your genetically encoded health risks and predispositions. After buying a kit online, you would spit into a receptacle, mail it to a lab, and have your results returned in a few weeks.