Exact Sciences Corp. has acquired Marshfield-based genetic testing laboratory
PreventionGenetics for $190 million.
The Madison-based
maker of colon cancer screening test Cologuard said in an announcement Monday the acquisition of PreventionGenetics complements its advanced cancer diagnostics portfolio and supports its entrance into hereditary cancer testing.
“PreventionGenetics is a natural fit with Exact Sciences, and we're thrilled to have their talented team join in our mission to make earlier cancer detection a routine part of medical care," said Kevin Conroy, chairman and chief executive officer of Exact Sciences. "We share in PreventionGenetics' belief that genetics can transform medicine, improve lives, and help eradicate cancer. With our deep relationships in primary care and PreventionGenetics' strong reputation among genetics specialists, Exact Sciences can help more people understand their inherited risk of cancer to catch it earlier and treat it more effectively."
Under the deal, PreventionGenetics received 50% in Exact Sciences common stock and 50% in cash.
Founded in 2004, PreventionGenetics has 25 geneticists on its staff and provides more than 5,000 types of genetic tests. The company expects preliminary 2021 revenue of approximately $36 million.
Currently, nearly 300,000 health care providers and more than 200 U.S. health systems use Exact Sciences' Cologuard and Oncotype DX tests in primary care, women's health, oncology and other specialties. With PreventionGenetics, the company said it plans to leverage its commercial reach in diagnostics to expand hereditary cancer and genetic testing throughout the U.S. and globally.
Exact Sciences said this week it expects to report revenue between $472 million and $475 million for the fourth quarter ending Dec. 31, 2021.
The biotech company has made a series of acquisitions in recent years, staking a claim in more corners of the cancer diagnostics market and widening its scope to include screening for more types of cancer, identifying the right course of therapy for cancer patients and monitoring cancer’s recurrence. It first introduced Cologuard – an at-home screening test that uses protein and DNA biomarkers to detect the presence of colon cancer in stool samples – after receiving U.S. Food and Drug Administration approval in 2014.Â
In November 2019, Exact made a $2.8 billion acquisition of California-based Genomic Health, which expanded its diagnostics into breast cancer with Genomic’s Oncotype DX test. In spring 2020, it acquired two Phoenix-based diagnostic companies, Paradigm Diagnostics, Inc. and Viomics, Inc. Those were followed by another acquisition later that year of England-based epigenetics company Base Genomics for $410 million.
In late 2020, it acquired Massachusetts-based Thrive Earlier Detection Corp. in a $2.15 billion cash-and-stock deal. In early 2021, it closed on two more acquisitions: Ashion Analytics, LLC, a sequencing lab in Phoenix Arizona, and PFS Genomics, a company that has developed a mechanism for identifying which women with early-stage invasive breast cancer need radiation therapy.
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