Expanding Access to Genetic Testing
July 25, 2025
The John and Margot Lane Foundation has an inspiring history of supporting pediatric health in southern Colorado, bringing care closer to home for numerous kids and families in the region.
Their significant philanthropic contributions helped us construct Children’s Hospital Colorado, Colorado Springs — and our Pediatric Intensive Care Unit is recognized with the Lane Foundation name in celebration of the family’s commitment to children in the community.
Now, the Lane Foundation is continuing its legacy of expanding access to the best care for all of Colorado’s kids by enhancing genetic testing and precision medicine capabilities in southern Colorado with a generous $1 million gift.
Precision medicine is highly personalized medical care. Through genomic testing, Children’s Colorado doctors study a child’s DNA to make diagnoses, develop individualized treatment plans, which often have fewer side effects, and tailor cures specifically designed for each patient. The benefits of genomic testing extend far beyond one child and can transform countless lives through the discoveries that result.
Dramatically Reducing Diagnostic Wait Times: From Years to Months
Today, out of the potential 1,000 children in southern Colorado needing genetic testing to inform their health journey, the vast majority face significant barriers in accessing this testing. The Lane Foundation’s investment will help accelerate the path to treatment for a broader and more diverse population of patients, ensuring more families get the answers they need,
much faster. With this critical funding, the genetic testing timeline will be cut dramatically — from years to around three to six months — thanks to the availability of more genetic counselors, faster interpretation of genetic findings, improved collaboration with pediatricians in the community and a more well-defined path to treatment options.
12,500
Children diagnosed annually at Children’s Colorado with rare genetic diseases
50%
Patients approved for testing by health insurance or Medicaid
About one in 10 Americans live with a rare disease. We estimate that we will be able to serve hundreds more patients each year through the Lane Foundation’s generous partnership.
Alisa Gaskell, PHD, Precision Medicine Institute’s Scientific Director
Additional genetic testing will have a ripple effect of benefits for patients across the system of care, including reduced costs, better analysis of the data collected and more diagnoses. Visionary philanthropists, such as the Children’s Hospital Colorado Foundation’s Board of Trustees Chair Betsy Searle, who made a transformational $5 million gift to precision medicine, are the key to expanding these initiatives.