Myriad Genetics

Myriad Genetics, Inc.
Company type	Public
Industry	Biotechnology, Genetic testing, Precision medicine
Founded	1991
Founder	Mark Skolnick, Peter Meldrum
Headquarters	Salt Lake City, United States
Area served	Worldwide
Key people	Peter Meldrum (CEO), Mark Skolnick (Founder)
Products	BRACAnalysis CDx®, Prolaris, myRisk Hereditary Cancer test, psychotropic test panel
Website	myriad.com

Adapted from the English Wikipedia article Myriad Genetics, available under CC BY-SA 4.0Updated 25 July 2025

Myriad Genetics, Inc. is a U.S.-based company specializing in genetic testing and precision medicine, with its headquarters located in Salt Lake City, Utah. Utilizing proprietary technologies, the organization supports healthcare providers and patients in uncovering the genetic foundations of various diseases. This approach facilitates the development of products that evaluate individual disease susceptibility, forecast drug efficacy, track disease advancement, and quantify disease activity.

History

The pursuit to identify the genetic origins of breast cancer gained momentum when Mary-Claire King, Ph.D., discovered the BRCA1 gene locus on chromosome 17. To isolate this gene, founder Mark Skolnick and his team innovated Restriction Fragment-length Polymorphisms (RFLP) mapping technology. In 1991, Skolnick partnered with Walter Gilbert and Kevin Kimberlin to launch Myriad Genetics.

By August 1994, researchers at Myriad, collaborating with the University of Utah and the NIH, successfully sequenced BRCA1 and filed patents for it, triggering a landmark case before the Supreme Court. The company established itself as a pioneer by becoming the first clinical laboratory to commercialize genomic testing services.

Myriad was the first to offer a molecular test assessing prostate cancer aggressiveness and created risk evaluation tools for inherited breast cancer that consider diverse ethnic backgrounds to address health inequities. Additionally, it brought to market a psychotropic test covering 61 medications used for treating depression, anxiety, and ADHD. As a frontrunner in DNA-targeted medicine, Myriad earned FDA approval for its BRACAnalysis CDx®, a companion diagnostic designed to predict patient response to DNA-repair therapies such as Lynparza™.

Acquisitions and Subsidiaries

In August 2016, Myriad expanded its genetic testing capabilities in psychotropic medication selection by acquiring Assurex Health for up to $410 million. The company further broadened its reproductive genetic testing services through the $375 million acquisition of Counsyl in July 2018, adding carrier and prenatal screening options. Its principal subsidiaries include Myriad International and Myriad Autoimmune (formerly Crescendo Bioscience).

Founders

Myriad Genetics was established by Peter Meldrum—who previously served as CEO of both Agridyne and Myriad Genetics—and Mark Skolnick, an Adjunct Professor at the University of Utah’s Department of Medical Informatics.

Products

Among Myriad’s offerings is Prolaris, a prognostic test employing gene expression profiling to estimate the 10-year prostate cancer-specific mortality risk. The myRisk Hereditary Cancer test analyzes genetic variants associated with an increased likelihood of developing eleven hereditary cancers.

Controversies

The patenting of human genes by Myriad provoked widespread debate and legal disputes. After identifying a gene on chromosome 17 linked to breast cancer susceptibility, Myriad sought patent protection for this gene. This action led to litigation culminating in the Supreme Court decision in Association for Molecular Pathology v. Myriad Genetics, Inc., which ruled that naturally occurring genes are not patentable. This verdict removed obstacles hindering biomedical research and access to genetic testing, although ethical questions surrounding gene patenting continue to be discussed.

Patent Litigation

From 2010 through 2013, Myriad Genetics encountered major legal disputes in the case Association for Molecular Pathology v. Myriad Genetics, where medical organizations challenged seven U.S. patents related to genes implicated in breast and ovarian cancers. In 2010, a federal district court invalidated the company’s patents on the BRCA1 and BRCA2 genes, which are connected to hereditary breast cancer risk. This decision was overturned by the Court of Appeals in 2011, which upheld the validity of those patents.

Subsequently, the Supreme Court nullified that appellate ruling in 2012, leading to additional judicial examination. Later that year, the Federal Circuit confirmed Myriad’s entitlement to patent isolated gene sequences but dismissed patent claims concerning methods based on DNA sequence comparisons. The Supreme Court accepted a second appeal and issued a decision in June 2013 declaring that naturally occurring DNA segments cannot be patented, thereby invalidating Myriad’s BRCA gene patents. Nevertheless, synthetic complementary DNA (cDNA) was deemed patentable.

On an international level, Myriad was engaged in Australian court proceedings regarding DNA sequence patents. Although initially prevailing in lower courts over BRCA1 patents, the company was ultimately defeated by a unanimous ruling from the High Court of Australia in 2015, influencing its worldwide patent enforcement approach.

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