Show-Me State Times

Saint Louis University (SLU) and SSM Health have announced their participation in the National Institutes of Health’s (NIH) All of Us Research Program. This initiative aims to collect data from over one million individuals, reflecting the diversity of the United States, to enhance precision medicine.

The program offers a large dataset for researchers to accelerate health research and medical advancements, focusing on personalized prevention, treatment, and care. Interested participants can join at SLU and SSM Health locations.

“The goal is to follow a million or more people living in the United States over time to inform precision medicine and to overcome decades of not including people who have been historically underrepresented in medical research,” said Jeffrey Scherrer, Ph.D., co-principal investigator for the program at SLU.

Participants' information will be available for researchers nationwide, supporting over 9,000 active studies using All of Us data. Personal identifiers are excluded from shared data.

Funded by NIH through a subcontract with the All of Us Trans America Consortium (TACH), SLU will launch the program in St. Louis. The initial funding spans five years but may extend up to ten years or more.

“This is exactly the right time to embark on this landmark program because we now have a better understanding of genetics,” stated Richard Grucza, Ph.D., co-principal investigator at SLU.

Participants will share health information via surveys and electronic health records and may provide biological samples for lab tests. They can opt into genetic testing with access to genetic counselors if needed.

“One of the great things about this program is that after people sign up to participate, they can choose to receive a DNA report back,” said Kimberly Enard, Ph.D., co-investigator on the program.

Researchers anticipate significant future benefits from current investments in this initiative. “Thanks to the inclusion of electronic health records, we’ll be able to see how disease develops and progresses in real-time,” noted Scherrer.

The NIH's effort aims at advancing precision medicine by considering individual environmental factors, lifestyle choices, family history, and genetic makeup. Grucza highlighted its potential: “This will produce a very rich dataset that will be of interest to everybody from the social sciences to cancer genetics.”

Enard emphasized addressing health disparities through diverse participant enrollment: “The future of medicine is laser-focused on addressing and eliminating health disparities.”

Scherrer expressed enthusiasm for leveraging big data through this project: “The project is really thrilling because...we have the opportunity to leverage big data...to answer countless questions about every area of human health you can imagine.”

SSM Health leaders also expressed excitement about collaborating on this initiative. “SSM Health is excited to collaborate in the All of Us Research Program,” said Jeremy Fotheringham from SSM Health.

Christine Jacobs from SLU added her support: “We’re really energized by the potential of this program to make meaningful advances in human health."