Estonia's biobank: Is this the first large-scale personalized medicine initiative?

Estonia is working on becoming the first country to implement personalized health at scale through the Estonian National Biobank.

The biobank uses genetic data to create a picture of the Estonian population, leading to the potential adaptation of public health systems. 

The Estonian Biobank has samples from 20% of the adult population; in comparison, UK biobanks only represent 0.7% of the population. With so much data, Estonia can determine risk factors for cancer, cardiovascular disease, mental and reproductive health, informing health investments to improves patient outcomes.

The project seeks to predict patients’ responses to certain medications based on their genetic makeup. As well as better patient outcomes, this approach could save health systems millions on ineffective prescriptions in the long run. It could also be a blueprint for other national health systems, including the NHS, to personalize healthcare at scale.

Earlier this year, the Estonian Biobank announced the next phase of its European Commission funded project in collaboration with sequencing firm PacBio. 

On the podcast this week, we have Professor Lili Milani, head of the Estonian National Biobank, and Neil Ward, VP of EMEA at PacBio.

01:27-04:06: What is the Estonian National Biobank?
04:06-05:15: Background on PacBio
05:15-06:43: What are the benefits of using genetic data to create a picture of the Estonian population?
06:43-08:24: What data is collected, and how is it used?
08:24-09:54: Protecting individual privacy
09:54-11:24: Is the databank used regularly by Estonian citizens?
11:24-12:35: Can the biobank help address disease earlier?
12:35-16:30: Are there economic savings?
16:30-17:16: How to expand the biobank program
17:16-19:44: How does the biobank help personalize medicine?
19:44-20:26: Are there regional differences?
20:26-21:57: How can Estonia’s system be applied to other countries?
21:57-22:57: Has there been international interest in the biobank?
22:27-22:52: Are pharma companies interested in the biobank?
22:52-24:05: The partnership with PacBio
24:05-26:15: Is AI being used in conjunction with the biobank?
26:15-27:26: Is the biobank project similar to other PacBio work?
27:26-29:00: What is the future for the biobank relationship with PacBio?
29:00-31:30: What is the future for the biobank?

Interested in being a sponsor of an episode of our podcast? Discover how you can get involved here! 

Stay updated by subscribing to our newsletter