4 ms·

I'm skeptical that there is anything massively different between the technology Theranos uses and that used by existing clinical diagnostic labs. Their greates

by pcrh 12y ago

I'm skeptical that there is anything massively different between the technology Theranos uses and that used by existing clinical diagnostic labs. Their greatest claim, as least in the popular press, appears that they can do these tests on "a few drops of blood" (it appears to be about 0.5 ml from the image) as opposed to 10 ml or so. This claim is nothing special, as in fact almost all tests are eventually done on an aliquot no larger than a few microlitres that is withdrawn from the larger sample. As to speed of results, this would likely be linked to organizational efficiency rather than a technical innovation. Further, there is no way all the tests shown on their website can be done with one 0.5 ml sample, as samples need to be collected into different anti-coagulants for different tests as some anticoagulants interfere with some tests but not other (this is why the doctor usually takes two or three samples into different tubes -- not because s/he needs 30 ml of blood). They may however have improved automation, or a better run or cheaper service, in which case, good for them.

lotsofmangos 12y ago
This gives a bit of perspective on their current system, it is far off something like a hand held scanner. It is from a blog article by a bio-chem due diligence company. Whether it was due to the quantity of tests (7 tests) or the particular tests I ordered, I was quickly informed that I would be receiving a standard blood draw for my first visit. To my surprise, only 75-80% of patients receive the finger stick method, while the remaining 20-25% require a standard blood draw. The company’s goal to expand nationally relies upon the ability to integrate within the infrastructure of existing Walgreens’ drugstores, a feat made difficult by the need for a trained phlebotomist to serve a specific group of test orders. While the company currently offers more than 200 blood diagnostic tests, the internal assay development team is working to expand this menu to include over 1,000 of the most commonly ordered tests at their CLIA laboratory located in Palo Alto, CA. In addition to my own blood draw, I stayed to observe the highly publicized finger stick, a staple of the start-up’s competitive appeal over established companies like LabCorp or Quest. It was here that the charm of Theranos became more obvious. Rather than a phlebotomist, a Walgreens pharmacy technician is easily able to perform the “nanotainer” blood collection steps, a testament to the simple and integrated workflow system developed by Theranos. Blood collection kits are provided to the technician, which include alcohol swabs, a warm compress, a finger stick, and a “nanotainer” (kept separately in a fridge). After scanning and labeling the sample tubes, the pharmacy tech begins the simple process as follows: apply warm compress to finger, clean the finger with alcohol swabs, massage blood towards the tip of the finger, stick the finger using one of 3 prick sizes (purple = small, pink = mid-size, blue = large), collect blood. The “nanotainer” which collects only a few drops of blood via capillary action, has continuously been an attractive marketing tool for Theranos, inflating the nano-sized tube with a larger than life persona. These samples are then stored in the fridge until a courier system can transport them to the CLIA certified lab in Palo Alto, where proprietary platforms allow the company to run traditional tests on 1/100th to 1/1000th of the ordinary volume. My results were emailed to my physician the following day. http://decibio.com/blog/theranos-small-sample-big-opportunity/ http://decibio.com/blog/theranos-small-sample-big-opportunit...
- pcrh 12y ago
  From that comment the key advantage appears to be the ability to collect blood without requiring a trained phlebotomist.

by pcrh 12y ago

lotsofmangos 12y ago

This gives a bit of perspective on their current system, it is far off something like a hand held scanner. It is from a blog article by a bio-chem due diligence company. Whether it was due to the quantity of tests (7 tests) or the particular tests I ordered, I was quickly informed that I would be receiving a standard blood draw for my first visit. To my surprise, only 75-80% of patients receive the finger stick method, while the remaining 20-25% require a standard blood draw. The company’s goal to expand nationally relies upon the ability to integrate within the infrastructure of existing Walgreens’ drugstores, a feat made difficult by the need for a trained phlebotomist to serve a specific group of test orders. While the company currently offers more than 200 blood diagnostic tests, the internal assay development team is working to expand this menu to include over 1,000 of the most commonly ordered tests at their CLIA laboratory located in Palo Alto, CA. In addition to my own blood draw, I stayed to observe the highly publicized finger stick, a staple of the start-up’s competitive appeal over established companies like LabCorp or Quest. It was here that the charm of Theranos became more obvious. Rather than a phlebotomist, a Walgreens pharmacy technician is easily able to perform the “nanotainer” blood collection steps, a testament to the simple and integrated workflow system developed by Theranos. Blood collection kits are provided to the technician, which include alcohol swabs, a warm compress, a finger stick, and a “nanotainer” (kept separately in a fridge). After scanning and labeling the sample tubes, the pharmacy tech begins the simple process as follows: apply warm compress to finger, clean the finger with alcohol swabs, massage blood towards the tip of the finger, stick the finger using one of 3 prick sizes (purple = small, pink = mid-size, blue = large), collect blood. The “nanotainer” which collects only a few drops of blood via capillary action, has continuously been an attractive marketing tool for Theranos, inflating the nano-sized tube with a larger than life persona. These samples are then stored in the fridge until a courier system can transport them to the CLIA certified lab in Palo Alto, where proprietary platforms allow the company to run traditional tests on 1/100th to 1/1000th of the ordinary volume. My results were emailed to my physician the following day. http://decibio.com/blog/theranos-small-sample-big-opportunity/ http://decibio.com/blog/theranos-small-sample-big-opportunit...

pcrh 12y ago
From that comment the key advantage appears to be the ability to collect blood without requiring a trained phlebotomist.