Dante Labs Review: Whole genome testing comes at a cost

Overview

1. Products: whole genome sequencing, whole exome sequencing, health reporting
2. Cost: $700-$1,000 for testing, typically $60 per report
3. Reports: nutrition, fitness, specific health conditions
4. Raw data access: yes
5. Privacy: GDPR compliant, data deletion available
6. Alternatives: SelfDecode

Pros

• Data from their tests usable with other services
• Large selection of reports

Cons

• Very high cost
• No testing option other than whole genome/exome sequencing
• A lack of personalized or prioritized health recommendations
• Potentially questionable business practices, including very long wait times for results and a poor, unresponsive customer support team (according to reviews)

About Dante Labs

Dante Labs was founded in 2016 by Mattia Capulli and Andrea Riposati. Their headquarters is in New York City but their lab is in Italy. Dante Labs was founded with the goal of making whole genome sequencing more accessible to consumers.

Review of Dante Labs Products & Features

Dante Labs’ primary offering is their whole genome sequencing. They also offer a more extensive testing option that includes both whole genome sequencing and whole exome sequencing.

With the data gained from their WGS testing, they offer a multitude of health-related reports. They cover issues such as nutrition, dentistry, dermatology, and a variety of conditions with genetic components.

You can also upload a file from another testing service to access some of Dante Labs’ reports without having to do their test.

Review of Dante Labs Reports

Each report focuses on a different health topic. Most of the reports cover genetic predispositions for specific conditions, but some cover more general topics, like nutrition or dermatology.

The reports begin with a quick summary of all of the variants analyzed in the report. The chart describes each characteristic/condition and provides a brief summary of how your DNA influences it.

For each characteristic covered in the report, there is a more detailed description that identifies the relevant SNPs, your genotype, and what your particular genotype means for you. There are recommendations included based on your results, but they are quite simplistic.

This is all that is included in the reports. These reports could definitely do a better job of summarizing the information and prioritizing recommendations. Since so many factors are covered within the report and recommendations are made for each, it is difficult to know where to start.

Cost of Dante Labs

Dante Labs’ 30x whole genome sequencing test costs $700. Included in this price is the test itself as well as reports on nutrition, fitness, and reaction to medications. You can request a report on rare diseases to be included as well.

Any additional reports cost extra: $60 per individual report or $600 to have access to all panels.

The company also offers a test that combines their whole genome sequencing with whole exome sequencing. The cost for this test is $1,000.

Is Whole Genome Sequencing Worth It?

Not yet.

Whole genome sequencing is far more expensive than other popular DNA test kits on the market that test up to a million SNPs. A test from SelfDecode, for example, will cost you $90 – this is far more affordable than the $700+ cost of WGS with Dante Labs.

Plus, by employing a technique called genetic imputation, you can infer the variations of many more SNPs than is sequenced by a standart SNP chip test. For example, SelfDecode uses AI and machine learning to accurately predict and analyze up to 83 million genetic variants from a typical DNA file.

At this time, you are getting very little for the significant extra cost required to have whole genome sequencing done. Other DNA tests on the market are more focused on the SNPs that have actionable insights attached to them, so they provide essentially the same end result when it comes to health information.

Health Recommendations from Dante Labs

Dante Labs includes some health recommendations in their reports. However, they are quite simplistic and are not holistic. The report makes each recommendation based on your genotype for each particular SNP, it does not take into account how multiple genes work together.

The reports would also benefit from prioritizing their recommendations. It is difficult to decide where to start when reading the recommendations included in their reports.

The nature of the recommendations depends on the report. In the nutrigenomics report, for example, all of the recommendations concern which foods you should eat more of or avoid.

Review of Dante Labs Privacy & Data Security

Dante Labs claims they are GDPR-compliant with your data, including allowing you to delete it. However, a Reddit user claims they were unable to find a way to delete their data or reach the company to request that they do so.

The company also claims that they process all of their data in the EU or the US and use a cloud-based database through Amazon Web Services.

SelfDecode vs Dante Labs

1. SelfDecode delivers natural supplement, diet and lifestyle suggestions based on your genes that you can implement right away. Dante Labs provides some suggestions but not all are personalized.
2. SelfDecode tells you why they make each recommendation so that you can understand the science behind the suggestion. Dante Labs does not provide as detailed of an explanation for their recommendations.
3. SelfDecode prioritizes recommendations based on their analysis of all the relevant genes instead of one gene at a time (through reports). Dante Labs does not prioritize recommendations.
4. SelfDecode takes a holistic approach to give recommendations that are best for your genes AND the health topic. Dante Labs does not take a holistic approach.
5. SelfDecode has the world’s first and only personalized genetics blog that allows you to get new gene-based recommendations daily. Dante Labs has a blog but it is not personalized and covers more general topics in the world of genetics.
6. SelfDecode is the most comprehensive and looks at more genes & SNPs (up to 83 million) to deliver the best analysis of genetic risks. Dante Labs is comprehensive in its analysis but costly.
7. SelfDecode supports everything with peer-reviewed scientific studies in their research and checks for contradicting information. Dante Labs backs up their conclusions with research but these studies are not cited in their reports.
8. SelfDecode never sells your data or gives it away. Dante Labs makes the same claim.

Comparisons

Dante Labs Reviews

Trustpilot – 578 Customer Average Rating of 4.0 of 5 stars

Reviews for Dante Labs on Trustpilot are mixed. Some users appreciate the comprehensiveness of their tests but others feel their customer support is unresponsive, and some even complain that they never received results and struggled to get a refund.

Better Business Bureau – Grade of F

Dante Labs has received 57 complaints with the Better Business Bureau. Customers complain about very long turnaround times for results and an unresponsive customer support team.

Read what people are saying about Dante Labs on Reddit

Reddit users say that it took upwards of six months to receive their data and they are unsure if it is even their own as there seem to be some definitive contradictions, such as hair and eye color.

Alternatives to Dante Labs

• SelfDecode: The best option for health-focused DNA analysis with personalized reports and recommendations to improve your quality of life.

Dante Labs Review Summary

Dante Labs provides the option of whole genome or exome sequencing for consumers worldwide. They also provide health-related reports with a sufficient amount of detail.

However, the whole genome sequencing pricing is high, especially compared to other companies in the space. The company also has many bad reviews online from customers who complain that the turnaround time for results was exceptionally long – often upwards of six months. Plus, there are a number of complaints about unresponsive customer service and difficulties getting refunded.

The reports also lack prioritized, holistic health recommendations. A service like SelfDecode offers far more personalized health recommendations and information about which ones to implement first. You can even upload a WGS file to SelfDecode to get more value out of your Whole Genome analysis.

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