The Sherpa Reaches 20,000

Thank you to all of my readers. I hope we have hit a significant landmark. I know the climbing will be tougher now. I hope you too are prepared for the next phase of this ascent. Remember, getting there is only part of the battle.

The 24th edition of the Genie is up. 24 is my lucky number and this edition delivers, so check it out.

The news that I will announce has to be delayed until Thursday. Sorry, but the legal dept. just won't budge. As for the news....here's a hint. National exposure.

I am dying to deliver my message and have been speaking to the public and the press about this topic. Lee, if you can hear me. Please give a call.

Some great things have popped up over the last week

• The prostate cancer risk genes and Family history. Guess what? Family history doubles the risk which the genes confer. Big surprise!


• EGAPP issues its guidance on ONCOTypeDX. Close to ready for prime time. MammaPrint, too soon to tell.


• Six new genes and Cholesterol? Get the genetic tests? No. Go get your cholesterol checked.


• Searching for your ancestry? Wind up finding cancer! If this happens to you give Helix Health of Connecticut a call


• The Gene Count drops to 20k! Should be easy for Google to catalog that.

Stay Tuned!

Wall Street Journal Agrees....We Need More Sherpas

In the WSJ today and also on GTO it seems we have a common theme. Something perhaps that I have been saying all along. It is nice to see Gautam agree with me....

From the Article:

Ever since the human genome was deciphered seven years ago, companies have been rushing to sell genetic tests directly to consumers. But buyers, beware: Many of the claims that accompany these tests are not fully supported by science.

Read my post about it

deCODE genetics' test for a gene variant linked to Type 2 diabetes: Some research says the predictive value is weak....

"The predictive value of the genetic test is pretty poor," says David Melzer, a professor of epidemiology at the University of Exeter, England. Last year, Prof. Melzer and colleagues published a study based on data collected from more than 900 elderly people in villages near Florence, Italy. They found that 80% of the people who tested positive for TCF7L2 didn't get Type 2 diabetes in old age. And nearly 40% of the people who had diabetes didn't carry the gene variant at all.

This One Too...

"The significance of the risks uncovered by these tests is very, very small," says Stuart Hogarth, a fellow at the Institute for Science and Society at the University of Nottingham, England, who has studied the genetic-testing industry. "Commercialization of genetics tests at this stage is premature."

Oh I think I said this too.....Twice

Let's chalk this all up to media hype...Or the lack of appropriate medical knowledge to combat the hype

"The Sherpa speaks the language of the trail, he/she knows short cuts and dangerous paths to avoid."

I hope I have served my readers well.......I know my Helix Health of Connecticut has.

-Steve