Huntsville, Ala. – The HudsonAlpha Institute for Biotechnology announced today that the Russel Hill Cancer Foundation will sponsor the Information is Power initiative through 2019. The announcement was made at the sold-out Tie the Ribbons luncheon, which raises funds and awareness for breast and ovarian cancer research at HudsonAlpha.
Information is Power is a collaborative effort between HudsonAlpha and genetic testing company Kailos Genetics, located on the HudsonAlpha campus. The initiative offers free and reduced cost genetic cancer risk testing for men and women in North Alabama, in collaboration with their local healthcare providers.
Today through November 6, 2019, HudsonAlpha is offering free testing to women and men 28 to 30 years of age who reside in Madison, Jackson, Limestone, Marshall or Morgan County. If you do not fall within that age range, the test is available at a discounted price of $129 for individuals 19 and older living in those counties.
To date, more than 3,500 test kits have been processed through the initiative and about three percent reported a mutation in genes linked to increased cancer risk.
“Many of the individuals who tested positive reported little to no family history of cancer,” said Liz Worthey, PhD, faculty investigator at HudsonAlpha. “Through Information is Power, we’ve been able to provide valuable information to those who were unknowingly at risk.” Worthey is the faculty lead for the initiative.
The test, offered by Kailos Genetics, screens for the well-known BRCA1 and BRCA2 genes, as well as more than 30 additional genes linked to an increased risk of breast, ovarian, colon and other types of cancers. New this year, individuals have the opportunity to gift a test to someone who might be interested in learning more about their cancer risk.
“Raising awareness is a key part of this initiative,” said Troy Moore, chief scientific officer at Kailos Genetics. “We want to empower the community to make informed healthcare decisions that not only affect them but their loved ones. Thank you, Russel Hill Cancer Foundation for giving us the opportunity to do so for another year.”
“Russel Hill Cancer Foundation is designed to help our cancer community and we can’t think of a better way to show our support than through the Information is Power initiative,” said Emily Davis, executive director at Russel Hill Cancer Foundation.
To learn more about Information is Power and order or gift a test, visit hudsonalpha.org/information-is-power.
About HudsonAlpha: HudsonAlpha Institute for Biotechnology is a nonprofit institute dedicated to developing and applying scientific advances to health, agriculture, learning, and commercialization. Opened in 2008, HudsonAlpha’s vision is to leverage the synergy between discovery, education, medicine, and economic development in genomic sciences to improve the human condition around the globe. The HudsonAlpha biotechnology campus consists of 152 acres nestled within Cummings Research Park, the nation’s second largest research park. The state-of-the-art facilities co-locate nonprofit scientific researchers with entrepreneurs and educators. HudsonAlpha has become a national and international leader in genetics and genomics research and biotech education and includes more than 30 diverse biotech companies on campus. To learn more about HudsonAlpha, visit hudsonalpha.org.
Media Contact:
Margetta Thomas
mthomas@hudsonalpha.org
256-327-0425
