SPONSORED REPORT Nicklaus Children’s Hospital ‘Project Baby Manatee’ Advanced Genomics Cuts Diagnostic Delays & Costs W hen a child is born with symptoms so rare that they confound doctors, or an older child develops an acute medical condition few health care professionals have treated before, it can cause needless suffering for the child and tremendous anxiety or depression for parents powerless to help. If this “diagnostic odyssey” drags on for months, even years, it can cost the health care system untold millions of dollars. A pilot genomic program from Nicklaus Children’s Hospital may hold the answers. Nicklaus Children’s, in collaboration with Rady Children’s Institute of Genomic Medicine, in 2018 launched “Project Baby Manatee.” It explored the health and cost benefits of whole genome sequencing (WGS) and rapid WGS (rWGS) in children with suspected congenital disease, multiple-congenital anomalies and/or multi-organ disease of unknown etiology. A 2020 report has proven its diagnostic and cost effectiveness. Entitled “Advanced Genomics for Critically Ill Children,” it studied the 50 children and families who had undergone rWGS through Project Baby Manatee. As a result of this project, 23 rare genetic conditions were diagnosed. The genetic findings led to changes in care for 19 patients, whether delivery of more appropriate treatment or even changes in diet or supplements. It also found that in some cases, patients were able to avoid unnecessary, invasive or high-risk procedures, like heart or liver transplants. The study, made possible through Florida State Appropriation funds and donations, also found that rWGS reduced health care costs by eliminating unnecessary procedures and shortening the diagnostic odyssey. In all, more than $3.76 million was saved through rWGS, yielding a more than $2.88 million return on investment. “As one of the first hospitals offering this level of personalized medicine, Project Baby Manatee has elevated the standard of care for testing of critically ill infants and children suffering unknown illnesses in the hospital’s intensive care units or outpatient clinics,” says Dr. Balagangadhar Totapally, MD, Director of the Division of Critical Care Medicine and Medical Director of the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit at Nicklaus Children’s Hospital. Nicklaus Children’s has performed rWGS, which can return results in as little as 72 hours, on more than 100 patients to date. WGS analyzes the entire human genome and its approximately 30,000 genes and identifies variants likely associated with a child’s condition. Scientists