DIY Medical Tests Are HOT

At her annual health checkup last year, Sonia Wadhwa was sent home with a fecal immunochemical test kit for detecting blood in the stool, which is an early sign of colorectal cancer. She found the do-it-yourself (DIY) test that included mailing and getting results within a week from the privacy of her home a seamless process.

Beyond pregnancy, ovulation (fertility) and COVID-19 tests, you can now take several medical tests from home for health results including thyroid, heart, liver and kidney functions, Vitamin D levels and sexually transmitted diseases. Inflammation-detecting tests that may spot early signs of conditions like Alzheimer's are also available via at-home testing kits. Inflammation home tests are sold under many brand names and range in price from about $25 to $100. Similarly, thyroid at-home blood test kits are also available. 

At-home medical diagnostic testing has exploded in recent years. NASDAQ reports that the market for at-home testing has reached a staggering $45.6 billion and will continue to grow at a rate of more than 10% per year to 2031. 

With additional test types coming to the market regularly, patients will have many more options in the DIY medical tests buffet.

"We're starting to see tests for celiac disease, tests that detect ulcers, hepatitis B and hepatitis C. Now that we've gained experience with COVID, we'll see tests for influenza and respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) coming to market soon," says Candy Tsourounis, professor of clinical pharmacy at the Department of Clinical Pharmacy at UCSF Health. 

Tsourounis also mentioned biomarker tests being developed for menopause that can be personalized by symptoms. "You'd pick inflammation, hormones, night sweats and then what they'll (companies) do is put together a menu of biomarkers that you can test."

The convenience of at-home testing allows patients to test themselves in the comfort and privacy of their homes. For example, those who think they may have sleep apnea but don't want to spend a night in the hospital for a sleep study have the option of an at-home evaluation and can get fitted for a CPAP machine. 

"A lot of people may feel uncomfortable sleeping in a different environment where they know their sleep is going to be assessed," Tsourounis says. "These tests are quite accurate. You may wear a monitor around your wrist or you'll have an oximeter that measures the oxygenation of your blood." 

She explains that these devices are designed to measure a variety of things like heart rate, oxygenation, arterial tone for blood flow and motor activity. 

"These are reliable indicators on snoring and apnea, periods of time when we're not breathing. You can measure when the apnea events are occurring because you can see that through all the measures that are captured on these devices and chest motion. It picks up the degree and the duration of snoring. All information is then relayed to your provider," Tsourounis says.

The University of Michigan's National Poll on Healthy Aging found that almost 50% of the people in the survey, ages 40 to 80, had used an at-home test. And 90% of those who'd bought a test for cancer brought their results to their health care provider, as did 55% of those who tested themselves for an infection. 

A study from the University of Minnesota points out that direct-to-consumer testing can be unclear in terms of follow-up. The positive side is that most people who take these DIY tests understand the importance of reporting the information to their doctors. 

As health care becomes more personalized, an informed and engaged population opens up significant opportunities for DIY diagnostic testing to reach its full potential. Besides convenience, the consumers are also looking for reliability, affordability and comprehensive support from the health care system.

If you get a positive test result from home testing, promptly contact your doctor to get retested, so that the results can be confirmed. If your home test is proven accurate, your doctor can start treatment. 

In a recent survey from Huron Consulting, more than two-thirds of consumers want to use apps to manage their care, while 70% are interested in receiving care at home to better manage their health. Apple Watch's AFib detection tool earned landmark FDA approval last year. You can also use the watch to measure your heart health, mobility, activity, medications and more.

Sending tests to the home allows patients to complete self-collection kits in a private setting whenever is most convenient, increasing the likelihood of participation and decreasing barriers to care.

Closer integration of at-home testing with other digital strategies such as telehealth and remote patient monitoring (RPM) create a smooth on-demand milieu where patients can work with providers to interpret results, develop comprehensive care plans and stay in contact.

As the number of primary care providers continues to dwindle, the health care industry is moving toward optimizing care delivery and expanding the availability of personalized services, including in-home diagnostics.  

According to a nationwide survey of 140 physicians by ixlayer, a Silicon Valley based health care technology start-up, 83% of physicians believe at-home testing can help move patients through the care system faster, accelerating the path to diagnosis and improving health outcomes. CVS and Walgreens enlisted ixlayer in 2022 to offer home tests for STDs, kidney function, diabetes and cardiovascular disease. 

Success of self-collection kits depends on easy-to-follow instructions; pre-paid return envelopes; remote assistance from a trained clinician during self-collection and the opportunity for a telehealth follow-up to explain results.   

Medical testing giant LabCorp recently launched LabCorp OnDemand, a service offering a line of home test kits for allergies, annual wellness, heart health, hormones and others. 

New research from the University of Pennsylvania found that companies that make at-home tests don't guarantee the same privacy rules as a doctor's office, and these tests often require the consumer to take on the responsibility of accuracy.  

While an at-home DIY medical test works much like those you're used to getting at your doctor's office, the responsibility of accuracy in sample collection for testing and prompt mailing lies with you. 

And, to her relief, Wadhwa's test results for colorectal cancer came back negative. Her results were added to her health portal that could be easily accessed by her and her health care team.

Shalini Kathuria Narang is a Bay Area based software professional and a freelance journalist. She has reported and written news stories and feature articles for national and international newspapers, magazines and news sites on health, technology, trends and current events.
She also writes poetry and her poems have been published in several anthologies. She is a monthly contributor to Masticadores USA and Spillwords Press. She was originally from New Delhi and now resides in California with her husband and two daughters. Read More