Personalized Medicine
Maturing Toward Investability
The evolution of personalized medicine is in its infancy but should continue
to gain traction. Personalized medicine is a broad concept, and we defi ne it as
the tailoring of medical treatment (from prevention to early detection, diagnosis,
treatment, and monitoring of patients) based on human genetic variability. While
individualized medicine as a new paradigm for the provision of healthcare services
remains at the very early stages, signifi cant innovation has continued in this area.
Furthermore, in an era of healthcare reform focused on improving outcomes and
reducing costs, we expect the concept of personalized medicine to continue to
gain traction and eventually become a major trend.
Is the concept investable? In our view, a number of companies across the
healthcare value chain (with diverse market cap and growth characteristics) are
evolving to be infl uential players in the delivery of individualized medicine and
could benefi t from its increased adoption. While we believe it is still too early to
use personalized medicine as a stand-alone strategy for investment, there are
many opportunities for investors to participate in the trend while taking a diversifi
ed approach, including through the diagnostic product manufacturers, PBMs,
and clinical laboratories on our coverage list.
Our recent personalized medicine conference highlighted specifi c investment
opportunities. William Blair & Company hosted the Personalized Medicine
Conference in New York City on August 6. The conference focused on defi ning
the concept of personalized medicine and identifying specifi c companies that have
been successful in commercializing personalized-medicine-based products or
are investing in the concept as a future growth trend. Presenting companies were
Genomic Health, Luminex, Laboratory Corporation of America, Medco Health Solutions,
Nanosphere, Quest Diagnostics, and XDx. The conference also featured a
number of industry speakers, including Executive Director Dr. Edward Abrahams
from The Personalized Medicine Coalition, Vice Presidents Dr. Alexander Vadas
and Sue St. Sure from L.E.K. Consulting, Vice President of Personalized Medicine
Research and Development Dr. Felix W. Frueh from Medco Health Solutions, and
Dr. Patrick Fortune, a partner at Boston Millennia Partners.
There are still a number of barriers to adoption that investors should be
aware of. Despite increased availability of genetics-based tests, the incorporation
of these tests into mainstream medicine has been relatively slow to-date.
Issues that have impeded the adoption of personalized medicine include uncertainty
around regulatory requirements, limited reimbursement coverage, lack of a
comprehensive healthcare IT system, and issues with physician awareness and
usage of related tests.