Generating new gene and cell therapies can be as complicated as understanding the diseases themselves, often taking years and costing millions of dollars.

According to the National Institutes of Health, about 350 million people globally live with a rare disorder, 80% of which are related to genetics. Creating these kinds of treatments, which replace and alter affected genes, can be difficult due to cost, length, and complexity of the treatment, side effects, and more, per Oxford Global Resources.

Boston-based Mass General Brigham is attempting to uncomplicate processes by pooling resources for researchers through its Gene and Cell Therapy Institute (GCTI).

“The goal of the institute is to have a very focused attention on patients who can benefit from gene and cell therapy, and help investigators who have technologies for treatment of specific types of diseases take them toward that first in-human trial,” Roger Hajjar, head of the GCTI, told Healthcare Brew.

Keep reading here.—CM

Health marketers are not new to collecting and utilizing data. But in today’s data-obsessed marketing world, it’s time to explore how it can be used to make more meaningful connections with customers.

Enter Quad’s The Data You’re Missing guide.

The Data You’re Missing focuses on digital marketers’ need for stronger data-acquisition tactics and more resilient sources, especially with today’s strong privacy regulations. Quad leans into household data, layering insights like attitudes, behavior, and intent to help you target your core audience.

In the guide, Quad dives into:

• fresh approaches to data acquisition
• shifting away from third-party cookies
• how health marketers can effectively + strategically use data

Ready to transform your strategy? Check out the full guide.

Doctors at Chicago-based Northwestern Medicine think kidney surgery is due for a wake-up call—literally.

Though general anesthesia is the norm in these procedures, some patients have health issues that make it riskier, such as an allergy, a severe phobia, or a history of adverse reactions. So the health system has established the AWAKE (Accelerated Surgery Without General Anesthesia in Kidney Transplantation) kidney program. It gives patients the option of getting a spinal anesthetic alongside a milder sedation that calms them while keeping them awake.

Doctors performed Northwestern’s first kidney transplant with this method in May and have done three total, with more scheduled over the next few months, spokesperson Mark Rudi told Healthcare Brew on August 12.

Patients, so far, are on board.

“My recovery has been very smooth. I was walking and eating solid foods the same day as my surgery, and I walked a half mile around my neighborhood the day I got home from the hospital,” said one of the patients, Harry Stackhouse, 74, in an August 7 Northwestern press release.

Keep reading here.—CC

23andMe can now do more than just tell you where your ancestors are from; they can send you GLP-1s.

The genetic testing company said on August 8 that it plans to launch a GLP-1 telehealth membership via its Lemonaid Health platform at the end of the month. Members will be able to receive prescriptions for brand-name or compounded semaglutide medicines, Anne Wojcicki, 23andMe’s co-founder and CEO, said during the company’s Q1 2025 earnings call.

“The addition of weight loss management for our customers fits directly within our strategy of delivering services to improve an individual’s health through preventive actions,” Wojcicki said.

23andMe bought telehealth platform Lemonaid Health for $400 million in 2021; it offers preventive services including primary care and lab testing. At the time, Wojcicki said Lemonaid would help the company provide “truly personalized healthcare, starting with genetics as the foundation.”

In addition to the membership, 23andMe plans to conduct a study using its trove of consumer data to uncover the genetic mechanisms that make GLP-1 drugs effective, while also digging into potential side effects.

Keep reading here.—MA

Go ahead, buck tradition. If typical healthcare roles aren’t your thing, you might wanna check out the latest episode of Game On! by Indeed. Michael Metzner—a physician turned producer for Grey’s Anatomy—discusses his career, dishes out advice, and offers insight on nontraditional healthcare roles. Check it out.