GeneDx joins $14.4 million NIH-funded genomic newborn screening study

 GeneDx (NASDAQ: WGS) announced its participation in BEACONS, a multi-state genomic newborn screening initiative that received $14.4 million in funding from the National Institutes of Health Common Fund Venture Program.

The three-year study will enroll up to 30,000 newborns across as many as 10 states to pilot the integration of whole genome sequencing into existing state newborn screening systems. Mass General Brigham and Ariadne Labs lead the collaboration, which includes Boston Children's Hospital, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, the Association of Public Health Laboratories, Case Western Reserve University, Baylor College of Medicine, and Illumina.

GeneDx will perform genomic sequencing and interpretation for the study, while governance and decision-making remain with public health and academic partners. The initiative aims to screen for hundreds of additional conditions that can be treated from birth, beyond the current standard newborn screening panel.

The study requires parental consent and education before enrollment. Parents will participate in surveys and interviews about their experiences, and a Community Advisory Board will address ethical, legal, privacy, and social considerations of newborn sequencing.

Robert Green, contact and co-lead investigator at Mass General Brigham and Ariadne Labs, stated that the initiative brings "the next generation of hope, giving families the option of genomic screening for hundreds of additional conditions that can be treated from birth."

The research team will select genetic conditions for screening based on input from rare disease advocates, state public health laboratories, and prior research evidence. The conditions chosen will be those that, when identified early, can meaningfully improve a child's health outcomes.

The project represents what organizers describe as the first national effort to evaluate whether genome sequencing can be implemented responsibly and sustainably through public health newborn screening programs in the United States.

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