I really like the idea of this… inexpensive, regular blood testing at home at moderate cost. This is a startup out of Y combinator, funded by Khosla ventures (Vinod Khosla is a big fan of rapamycin), that seems to be doing good things that would mesh well with longevity hackers who want to track results more closely (which I think should be all of us).
The company is providing blood tests right now that you mail in monthly, but they are working on at-home testing equipment (somewhat similar to what Theranos was trying to do it seems, but real vs. fake).
It would be ideal if they covered all the typical blood tests that we need to do for calculation of the Levine Phenotypic age, and Aging.ai r3 biological age.
Because the tests are so much cheaper than alternatives, the company wants you to sign up for monthly subscriptions rather than a once-only test. The basic one, at $95 a month, detects about 20 biomarkers (see table), including the sex hormones testosterone (in the male version) and estrogen (female). All of the biomarkers are worth watching—including many (like vitamin D) that are not covered as part of the annual physical under most insurance plans. A national provider like Labcorp charges $100 for the vitamin D test alone—more than the entire SiPhox panel. Unless—big if—your insurance covers all these tests, the Labcorp total would be close to $500—and I can do it at home, without the trouble of an appointment.
The kit comes with finger pricking lancets, an index-card sized paper sample collector, Band-Aids, and a return envelope. The collection process was very simple, especially if you’ve ever done at-home glucose testing. I poked one of my fingers with the ordinary-sized lancet and squeezed a few drops of blood onto the sample collection card.
Just got this email from SiPhox - some people here might be interested:
Hi there!
Thank you for registering your interest in being one of the first SiPhox Health users to test our new CGM (Continuous Glucose Monitor) integration designed to track your metabolic response to food and lifestyle choices.
We are launching CGMs as part of a new initiative that allows us to provide our members with a universal toolkit for everything you need to start a personalized health optimization journey.
The first 50 people to sign up for the SiPhox Unlimited membership from the CGM waitlist will receive a free (!) Abbott Libre Freestyle 2 CGM as part of the membership!
The SiPhox Unlimited membership ($16.40/month) gives members access to our best offering to date:
Access to our best and most flexible pricing ($95 per test and pay as you go vs. $300 elsewhere)
Sample collection assistance kit (Includes extra lancets, a hand warmer, and blood-flow stimulation device)
Abbott Libre Freestyle 2 CGMs for Metabolism Optimization ($120 vs. $150 elsewhere)
A c****loud-connected glucometer (free) for easy and highly accurate point measurements of fasting glucose (includes CGM calibration if necessary)
Blue blocking glasses for sleep and circadian rhythm optimization
A curated set of supplements personalized to optimize your biomarkers across inflammation, metabolic health, nutritional and hormonal balance, and cardiovascular health ($49 per category, Pay as You Go)
A premium organizer for storing your biohacking tools (free) Join today!
Note: If you’re a subscriber and would like to switch to the new Unlimited membership to buy as many – or as few – kits as you want at any time and receive a free CGM and blue blockers, please purchase the Unlimited membership via the link above and our support team will ensure that your current subscription is shut off.
If you have any questions, feel free to respond directly to this email!
Intel Capital, Khosla lead $27M investment into SiPhox Health’s at-home blood-testing tech
Six out of 10 Americans are living with a chronic disease, but access to convenient and low-cost health testing isn’t always available for patients, and bottlenecks still exist with current testing approaches.
SiPhox Health wants to change that through more advanced blood testing using silicon photonic chip technology to put a lab-grade health testing device in every home. This is the semiconductor technology that transformed internet connectivity.
Marek pricing for all* tests included in the SiPhox package: $215.55 w/discount code. *(I don’t see a SiPhox-computed testosterone/cortisol ratio, so not included here.) See at bottom.
One/year ‘subscribe and save’: $195/test.
Four/year ‘subscribe and save’: $165/test
Unlimited membership gets the price down to $95. I don’t see a minimum number of tests you need to order, but you do pay $194/year for membership regardless.
Unlimited one year membership + two tests = 194+95+95 = $384.
Two Marek tests = 215.55+215.55 = $431.10.
Unlimited membership also has an add-on ‘health hormone+ panel’. I priced the eight male indicators on Marek and came up with $96, whereas SiPhox wants $190. If ‘one time add-on’ means you pay once, and these additional tests are included in every subsequent test order, then maybe it pays off after the third order.
Still have to run to LabCorp for a CBC.
Is it worth it to access a CGM for $100 for two weeks? (Another unlimited feature.)
Yes - I think you are correct, SiPhox is a service that you pay more for, for the convenience of doing home-based testing whenever you want without the hassle of waiting at the LabCorp office.
Paul - so you got on the SiPhox plan. Generally, how have you found the plan? I think the situation is that they are doing the lab processing themselves right now (or via Labcorp) and plan to launch their home-based hardware later - is that what you’ve heard?
You can get the newer Freestyle Libre 3 for $61.97 for 2 CGMs (4 weeks) at Costco w/ Abbot coupon and no insurance coverage, so $100 for 2 of the older (larger) CGMs is NOT a good deal. The Abbot coupon guarantees a maximum price of $74.99 for 2 CGMs at any pharmacy.
